Need help with unwanted email (1 Viewer)

[Frank Zimkas]

I've got a problem receiving unwanted (adult content) email from various sites. How in the hell do I get off of these damn mailing lists? I've got 2 young children that I don't want exposed to this filth.

I've tried replying to the sender and asked to be removed from their list but most of the time I get an email message stating that my reply was undeliverable!

Anybody have any ideas?

 

[Matt Gordon]

Frank,

I don't know what kind of computer you have, but there are e-mail programs out there that offer "junk filters." They take a little bit to learn what is and what isn't spam (you teach it as you go), but can be pretty effective.


Matt

 

[John Watson]

E-mail prgrams have a "Block sender" feature under Tools. I don't know what the sender sees, but the feature apparently sends the junk from whatever sender adddress you specify, right to your Delete box.

Legislation is probably required to make spam illegal, unless the sender has a viable means of ceasing upon recipients request.

 

[Jay H]

Yeah, it would be hard to get rid of them, short of calling your ISP and changing your email address, however you should be able to filter out most, if not all of them. Find out how to create a hidden folder, password protected and try to set up a filter to filter out your typical Adult email, try the most logical keywords through the subject and/or message body. Then when your kids are not around, just go through that folder to make sure everything is really spam.
Of course, if you're just getting it from one source, then you can block that sender or do the same thing, filter it to the hidden folder. Even if they are coming from unique sources, if only a part of it is always common, you should be able to create a filter for it. i.e. if you get mail from
[email protected]
and
[email protected]
Your filter should be able to just search for "spamsite" in the "from:" field and filter both into your folder.
This is just one step you can do to try to remove spam.
Jay

 

[Frank Zimkas]

Thanks for the tips. I have already set up a "filter" thru my ISP but some stuff still sneaks through on occasion. I really don't want to change my email address but it looks like that may be the only option at this point.

 

[AllanN]

If you do get a new e-mail address from you isp. Go and also create a Yahoo or Hotmail or similar account. Use your ISP account to message only your trusted friends, family and businesses. Use the other account for other things. I use 3 accounts. One account is ONLY for close friends and family. The second is for dealing with business and its also the account that I make publicly known. The third is just a junk account that I use when im filling out a web-form for something and don't want them to get my real email address.

 

[Chris Beveridge]

You'll only get spam on the new account as well. It's just a fact of current email life. The simplest thing to do is to just delete it as you receive it and be thankful you don't have a webmaster email address or a domain address at all. I average several hundred pieces of spam of varying kinds every day. They're easy to figure out though and just take one key to delete.

Besides, if your kids are young, why are they opening your email client?

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I've tried replying to the sender and asked to be removed from their list but most of the time I get an email message stating that my reply was undeliverable!

I would advise you not to do this. All your reply has accomplished is informing the sender that your email address is actively being used. This makes your address more valuable, and you will end up on even more spam mailing lists once your address is sold to another "mass marketer".

 

[Cees Alons]

I second Scott's remark, he beat me to it:

NEVER ever reply to spam messages or try to have yourself "unregistered". They can sell 'm better after that (lists of confirmed e-mail addresses are much more valuable).

Cees

 

[Frank Zimkas]

Chris,
My kids do not use my PC but they are often in the room when I am using it so they can see and read what is on the screen. I refuse to hide in a closet because some jackass thinks that bombarding me with junk email will make me buy their "product/service"!

I guess its kind of like dealing with telemarketers...you just gotta live with it.

 

[Andrew W]

My kids do not use my PC but they are often in the room when I am using it so they can see and read what is on the screen.

If you are using any type of mail program that has a "preview" window, you should turn it off.

When your mail client hits a web server to display an image in your preview screen, that can also confirm that your email address is valid and then you will get even more spam.

 

[Ryan Wright]

Besides, if your kids are young, why are they opening your email client?

I don't think that's the point. My daughter is only 5 now, but some day I'd like to give her a computer of her own and access to the Internet. I don't need her seeing advertisements for penis enlargers and triple-x porn sites. My only option will be to personally screen all of her email before passing it on to her, and I don't think she's going to appreciate that when she gets to be, oh, say, 12 years old...

SPAM has been going on for far too long and our lawmakers refuse to do a damn thing about it - it pisses me off, big time. Washington State (where I live) has a law, but it has no teeth: It's nearly impossible to collect damages.

 

[Tom Meyer]

What you could do is set up your filter to only *allow* certain addresses to go to the inbox & have everthing else put in a hidden folder or something. That way, you can go through the box each day and add anyone new to your "approved" list if you want. Everything else gets deleted.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Spam will never be made illegal

However, I can see all current telemarketing laws being applied to it, such as "DO NOT CALL" lists, fines and others

The only problem is that they will just move out of the US and start again. Already most spammers are bouncing the mail through open access ports in Asia

 

[Chris Beveridge]

Frank,
By the time she's 12, she'll likely be dealing with a whole new layer of things that half of us won't understand. It's like my parents trying to make sense of the whole IM language culture. It just makes zero sense to them.
Instead of hiding it, educate 'em. Mine's only two now, but she's a sponge and learns what I teach her.

 

[Marianne Puckley]

I've had the same problems as well. I blocked all the senders. That didn't work because they makeup a new email everyday to send out more spam. What I found to be the most effective was actually go to my email filter. In hotmail there is this thing that you can do to direct mail directly to the trash can. I just type in words that elude to sex and have it sent to the trash can. So far this has worked. Occassionally, I still get some that has mananged to slither to my email, but then I add those words to the trash can filter once again.
Hope this helps.

 

[Frank Zimkas]

Thanks to all that replied. I don't want to give the impression that I'm some kind of Holier Than Thou prud, I just get sick and tired of invitations to pay good money to look at a bunch of skanks that have no self esteem! I really don't want my family subjected to it either, just like you folks. I'll mess around with my email screener and see if I can block some more trash.

Thanks Again!

 

[Ryan Wright]

The only problem is that they will just move out of the US and start again. Already most spammers are bouncing the mail through open access ports in Asia

See, this is easy for me. I've blocked off entire countries at my firewall. Don't need their spam, don't need them hacking into my servers, and I don't communicate with them, anyway. I don't know anyone in most of these countries, therefore, I have no need to communicate with the country at all.

 

[Neil Joseph]

Take a look at this thread for a possible solution...
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...threadid=94905