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1  Minimising spam (unsolicited email)

Spam

 is now a potential problem for every company and individual using the Internet. At 

the time of writing over 75% of emails were spam or  virus-  related in some countries and 

individuals whose inboxes are unprotected can receive hundreds of spam emails each day. 

The spammers rely on sending out millions of emails often from 

botnets

 of infected PCs in 

the hope that even if there is only a 0.01% response they may make some money, if not neces-

sarily get rich.

Legal measures to combat spam have had limited success. So, many information services 

managers are now using a range of methods to control spam. Figure 11.30 summarises alter-

native techniques to combat spam. Figure 11.30(a) is the original situation where all mail 

is allowed into an inbox. Figure 11.30(b) uses different techniques to reduce the volume of 

email through identification and blocking of spam. Figure 11.30(c) is a closed inbox where 

only known, trusted emails are allowed into an organisation.