The Ultimate Guide To Knowing How To Use Spam Emails Effectively

Show:

February 26, 2021 Business

Spam emails or unsolicited commercial emails (UCE) as they are often referred to are a bunch of commercial messages. Most times, they may contain hazardous links that once opened may infiltrate a user’s device. So, why do people keep getting unwanted emails?

Why do users keep getting unwanted emails?

First of all, it is important to know that over 200 billion emails are sent worldwide daily. However, about 49% of them are spam. So, people keep wondering why they get spammed? Well, below are some of the reasons

You have posted your email on a public website: One of the reasons why you keep getting spam emails is that there must have been an occasion where you posted your email on a forum or a website. People who are scouting for clients via cold emailing on the internet would have picked it up and hence the spam messages.
You must have subscribed to a newsletter: A lot of times, people fail to read the terms and conditions especially on a company’s website. There must have been a time where you agreed to keep getting emails from them by clicking “agreed”.
You have clicked on a malicious email before: Another reason why people keep getting spam emails is as a result of them mistakenly clicking on an email that the sender is unknown. By doing so, it triggers the sender that such email is active, hence they deem it fit to use you for phishing scams.

What are the types of spam?

There are various kinds of spam, and they are:

Phishing emails: This is oftentimes regarded as the most dangerous type of spam around. Phishing emails attack the most powerful computer there is which is our mind. What this kind of email does is trick the user into surrendering his or her personal information. Some of that vital information are; credit card details, and sometimes even website log-in details. What it does is a clone or rather mimic a family content and make the information seem urgent. A few of the phishing ploys are:

Would ask to verify a purchase that was never initiated by the user
A void invoice for payment can be requested
The mail might ask the user to update his or her billing information.

Malspam: This kind of spam is harmful and sometimes very persuasive. What this type of spam does is trick the recipient into clicking on a download link and once achieved, it might result in harming the user’s computer. In a lot of cases, they come in the form of PowerPoint, Word, and even Pdf files. Over the years, malware attacks have been in the form of trojan horses and have focused on businesses and consumers.
Spam on mobile/android: This type of spam is usually from unknown persons requesting to either sell out a product or persuade you to purchase a product. The android base alone has plenty of users, running into billions that the cybercriminals can decide to target.
Advance – fee scam: This type of spam is becoming more rampant as the days pass by. The advance-fee scam has to do with a sender (unknown) who tries to offer mouth-watering rewards for a substantial fee. Once the cash has been wired to the criminal, he then absconds with the money as there wasn’t any reward or fortune that needed to be unlocked in the first place. Even though this type of scam might appear transparent, a lot of times you get to find out that people still fall for such. The trick being adopted here is most times referred to as social engineering. What it does here is to persuade the victim into making rash decisions.

Furthermore, people always feel drained each time they receive emails that are of no importance to them. So, how best can they avoid getting those unwanted emails?

Tips on how to avoid receiving unwanted emails

Avoid revealing your email on public websites: One of the ways a user can avoid receiving unwanted emails is by ensuring that their emails aren’t made public on websites or even the social media space. Many times, Spammers and scanners are always searching on the internet for emails that are available online. However, should there be a need to allow your email to be visible on social media, there must be some kind of limit on the number of people that can view your email.
A cybersecurity alert is highly recommended: In as much as unwanted emails are annoying, it is also harmful or can cause harm to the user’s digital space. This is why it is of importance that the user has a cybersecurity app to checkmate irrelevant emails.
Avoid engaging with spammers: We all know how annoying when you keep getting emails from a particular sender. Even though those messages might be uncalled for or irrelevant, you shouldn’t get confrontational and try to reply to them or respond to such emails. Avoiding spammers wouldn’t agitate them, and hence it is another important tip to adhere to.
Only subscribe to trusted companies or websites: Another tip that shouldn’t be ignored is this. Even though you may want to get newsletters or even promotional messages, you must do so with brands that are not only reliable but one in which you can trust.

Also, it is a known fact that any mail sent that is of no importance is regarded as a spam message. However, by doing the right thing or better still following the aforementioned tips above, you can avert or stop receiving such emails.

It is important to know that not all emails sent are harmful as some may need your assistance in marketing their product or giving feedback on a product. However, the effective way of handling a spam message is to quickly delete it without viewing it in the first place.