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Spam Filtering Tips to Avoid the Downside of Spam Filters

I hear it every day... "I hate all this spam - what can I do about it?" I then point folks to two of my most popular articles:

• How to Identify and Handle Spam/UCE
• Stop the Spam!

Even if you take all the steps or recommendations mentioned in the above articles there are still some obstacles we have to tackle when it comes to spam filtering. Spam filtering tools are still evolving and let's face it are simply programs trying to determine based on known criteria what is spam or not. Right now it is very common that some email you will receive - and send - will be misidentified as spammy and sent to junk or trash incorrectly. So, it behooves you to take that extra moment and check your trash before you delete what you perceive to be all spam.

Most email programs allow email to be listed either by whom it was sent by, the date or the Subject: amongst other criteria. When reviewing your junk or trash folder organize it by Subject:. Doing so helps those spam that are mass mailed with the same Subject: to stick out like a sore thumb allowing you to confidently skip over them and move on to those possibly misidentified email. Next, as you peruse the list, those rare Subjects: that appear to be legitimate, take a quick look over to see who sent it. If the name is malformed, in all small case, first name only, you don't recognize it or doesn't make sense - skip over it and you are safe to let the email be deleted.

Checking your trash before you clear it out can prevent the few emails that are misidentified as spam from getting deleted. Many times these email, don't have a Subject:, include typical phrases used by spammers or have text formatting that triggers spam filters. When I run into this from clients or friends whose email incorrectly ended up in my junk folder, I send them a quick note informing them that their email did end up in my junk folder, why I think that happened (no subject, all small case, text formatting) so that they know if it happened to me, their email to others could also be landing in the trash. It is each of our responsibility to make an effort so as to not come off as spammy, however, filtering tools are not perfect and it can happen sometimes for reasons unknown.

With all the blocker software and filters now included with ISP accounts, the first thing you need to do is create your white list or approved list. Add your friends and your known contacts the minute you engage such a service or those who you are already communicating will have the inconvenience of having to go through your approval process just to continue to communicate with you. Have the courtesy to add those whose email addresses you already have and save them this extra step.

If you sign up for notices or mailing lists, pay close attention to any notice of what email address you should immediately add to your approved or white list. If you are not sure, add their dot com to your list so the email you want to receive from them comes through. With my services folks are advised exactly what address I will be sending from and are requested to add it to their list so my emails get through. Some don't and if I do not have the time, I am unable to go through the process of getting approved and they miss out on all this good information they requested to be sent! For folks who send out 1,000s of email, many times they simply do not have the time be able to go through all the email approval processes for something you had requested to receive in the first place.

Another problem that has been occurring quite frequently as of late are mailboxes getting overloaded with old spam due to the "Leave Mail on Server" feature of your email program. This feature is a great tool for when you want to download email at home and keep a copy up on the server so that you can download it again when in the office or visa versa at a later date. This feature requires your attention in that if you leave all your email on the server indefinitely, eventually your email box reaches its capacity and then starts bouncing incoming email due to your account being over quota.

What does this have to do with spam? Actually, this has to do with spam + attachments. As many who get the volume of email that I do, I have my email program set to not automatically download attachments over a certain size. This gives me the opportunity to see if it is an attachment that I am expecting or even one I want to download. If I don't want to download it, I click the trash icon and when I check email next time or when I empty the trash, that attachment is automatically deleted from the server without downloading. I recommend you set your download level to 500,000 bytes. This means any attachment under 500K will be downloaded automatically and help keep your inbox clear while allowing you to approve the really large attachments that come in that you were not expecting or were not given a courtesy notice from the sender that they were on their way.

Now, imagine if you have attachments coming in that you don't want that also happen to trip your spam filters. These email go directly to junk or trash and that bypasses your opportunity to determine if/when the email should be deleted from your server which leaves that attachment up in your email box for perpetuity. These email go straight to junk or trash, you empty your trash and the attachment is still up on your server using resources. Over time, and the time frame is dependent on how many email and attachments you get each day, your email box will get filled and new email will bounce.

The solution? If you use the "Leave Mail on Server" feature of your email program, also use the 2 options that go with it. "Deleted from Server after X amount of days" (number of days depends on how many email and attachments you get on a daily basis) and "Delete from Server when emptied from Trash." This will cover any spam or attachments that get left up in your email account without your knowledge due to your spam filters catching the email and sending them off to trash before your review.

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