My
thanks to Brandi Jasmine at http://www.idirect.com for this article.
Full marks for content!
Spam Relief FAQ by Brandi Jasmine
Q: What can you do to help me stop spam?
A: We need the full headers of the message because many times these messages are forged. The full headers do contain clues that will help our sysadmin track the true origin of the message. If you are using Eudora, click on TOOLS, OPTIONS, FONTS & DISPLAY, and select "SHOW ALL HEADERS (EVEN THE UGLY ONES). Exit and re-enter Eudora. You will notice that the headers (with the to: from: etc., information) are much bigger. Highlight the message, copy it, and paste it into a new mail message and send it to nemanic@idirect.com. I will direct it to our systems administrator who will attempt to track it and get you removed from the list. We may not be able to provide any guarantees, but we have a good rate of success at stopping most of these spams.
Q: How did this person get my e-mail address?
A: Impossible to say. They may have seen a post you left on a Usenet group. You may have filled out a form at their web sites. Some crafty spammers even have created robots that search every domain to scoop e-mail addresses. In some cases a prankster friend has given them your address. In any event, it's unlikely that your address represents more than an opportunity to make some easy money or to cause a stranger frustration - chances are they know nothing more about you than your e-mail address.
Q: Can't you just block this sort of thing?
A: Each "spammer" (the person sending unwanted e-mail) must be dealt with individually, unfortunately. It is not possible at this point for iDirect to filter individual accounts because this would add an additional layer of processing time to the system, slowing down mail service to an unacceptable level. It is all too simple for such people to get multiple accounts at a variety of providers, frustrating any attempt to filter them. Cyberpromotions, one of the worst offenders, has dozens of domain names registered, and frequently changes these domains to get around filtering.
Q: So how do I stop this?
A: The best approach is for you to notify the spammer that you want no more messages from them - and indicate that any further messages will be considered harassment. In most cases this is sufficient to stop any further messages from that particular individual. If they continue to send messages to you, you may need to contact their provider. Your provider will likely be willing to handle that for you if you wish to remain anonymous, but it is best that you do so directly: a multitude of complaints from different users will ensure a faster response by the spammer’s provider. All you have to do in most cases is send a note to "postmaster@domain.com" (where domain.com is the domain name of the spammer). If the spammer’s e-mail address is john@q.public.com, then write to postmaster@q.public.com.
It is a good idea to be polite, and include a copy of the spam-post or e-mail (so it can be quickly traced if required - some e-mail addresses are forged). Allow about three days for a reply - especially over the weekends. Some providers are small Mom-and-Pop operations and don’t have large staffs.
Q: What do I do if the spammer has forged their address or if postmaster@spammer.com returns an error message?
A: Often, there is a phone number, address or fax number included in the spam. While responding along these routes may seem extreme, if spammers got as many complaints through phone, fax and postal mail as they do from e-mail, word would more quickly get around that spamming is a poor business choice. Look in the headers for any domain names that appear in the From: Field, and use "Whois" to locate the spammer's systems administrator (in some cases this will be the spammer themselves):
Domain Name: DOMAIN.COM Administrative Contact: Smith, Jon (DP1111) jon@DOMAIN.COM 555-1212 Billing Contact: Smith, Jon (DP1111) jon@DOMAIN.COM 555-1212
(This is for sample purposes only)
If you would like to download Whois Tools to use yourself in future cases, please visit www.tucows.com and select a Finger/Whois client appropriate to your operating system. I am using Wfinger: http://www.eb.uah.edu/~adanil/
Q: Can I block these messages myself?
A: Yes! You can download Pegasus E-mail - a freeware mail program that offers filtering options. You can specify an e-mail address or string of characters ("MAKE MONEY NOW" for example) that will trigger the program to automatically delete the message. Pegasus is available for download at: http://www.pegasus.usa.com/. Eudora’s latest Lite version, and Microsoft's Internet Mail also now offer the feature, and are available at TUCOWS.
Q: Are there any other tools for fighting spam?
A: There is a freeware program called "Spam Hater" available that makes dealing with unwanted spam much simpler. Download from http://www.compulink.co.uk/~net-services/spam/
If you have Eudora Pro, check out "How to Fight Spam with Eudora 3.0"
If you have any other questions about spam, please let me know!
Brandi