Spam is the term given to unsolicited email. Spam is usually commercial in nature and is meant to entice you to visit a web site or to purchase a product or service.

ISS hears from GW faculty, staff and students on a daily basis who are fed up with constantly getting spam in their mailboxes. Of course, spam is hardly a problem at GW alone. It's a worldwide problem with no easy solution. Nevertheless, ISS has developed a list of suggestions that may be of useful in preventing spam from reaching your mailbox.

You can enable the spam filtering by logging into the Account Management Console at https://amc.gwu.edu/. Instructions for spam filtering are also available.

Here you can submit email messages with headers that should have been marked as Spam or were incorrectly marked as Spam.

Opening spam can often alert spammers that they have reached a working email address and potentially sell your email address to other spammers. If you do not know the sender and the subject line has odd characters we suggest that you do not open the email but to delete the email.

Some spam messages are sent in HTML format and may contain hidden codes. If such a message is previewed via the preview pane of your email client, the hidden codes can alert the spammer that they've reached a working email address. In order to prevent the receipt of HTML messages, you can set your email client to deliver the messages in plain text format only. Here is how you can set your email client to receive plain text messages using:

Windows

• Outlook Express 5.5: Click on Tools > Options > Read tab. Check the Check box to Read All Messages in Plain Text. Click on Apply > Ok.

If you choose to receive HTML messages, you can set your email client so that it does not preview messages. Here is how you can change your email client preview settings using:

Windows

• Netscape 4.7x: Click on View > Show > Message to disable the preview pane.
• Outlook Express: Click on View > Layout > deselect the Show preview pane checkbox. Click on Ok.
• Outlook 2000: Click on View > Preview Pane. This will either enable or disable the preview pane depending on your current settings.

Mac OS

• Netscape Messenger 4.7x: Click on the horizontal divider. This will either enable or disable the preview pane depending on your current settings.
• Outlook Express : Click on View > Layout > deselect the Show preview pane checkbox. Click on Ok.

Auto-responders are out-of-office messages. Be aware that if your auto-responder is active when you receive spam, the auto-responder will confirm the existence of your email address to the spammer.

By purchasing from spam ads, you are enabling the spammer to accomplish their goal of making money and using spam as a way to advertise their products. Once you have made a purchase, you are now open to receiving additional spam.

Many unsolicited email messages offer a method to remove your email address or unsubscribe from their list. You can follow the instructions in the unsolicited email to remove your email address. If you need additional assistance in removing yourself from a list, contact our ISS Help Desk at ithelp@gwu.edu or (202) 994-5530.

However, there is one important warning to heed. Many unethical spammers will not honor your request to be removed, and in fact, will use your unsubscribe request as proof that your account is active. In general, trying to get removed from a list should only be attempted when you believe that the company sending you spam is generally reputable, and that you may have been placed on their list by accident or by your request.

While handling multiple email accounts may be cumbersome, many people find it useful to have public and private email accounts. For example, you could use your @gwu.edu address for business and academic purposes, but create a Hotmail (www.hotmail.com) or Yahoo (www.yahoo.com) account to use on the Internet for message boards and newsletters. Therefore, if the Hotmail/Yahoo address becomes proliferated with spam, it can be discarded and a new account can be established.

When establishing an email account, it is a good idea to combine letters and numbers: j123smith@. The combination of letters and numbers makes it more difficult for the spammers to guess your email address than if it were letters only: jsmith@.

Avoid providing your email address when you are unsure how it will be utilized. In addition, read the fine print when you sign up for newsletters and memberships. Many times opt-in check boxes are pre-checked when you sign up. Uncheck the opt-in check box if you do not want to be included in a membership directory or to avoid receiving emails about company promotions etc.

Depending on what email client you use, you may be able to filter out annoying messages, so they are automatically deleted or filed to a spam folder. ISS has written directions for mail filtering for Netscape Messenger, Microsoft Outlook, and Pine. Those instructions are available on the ISS Virtual Help Desk, located online at http://helpdesk.gwu.edu//mailfilter/. Click on Online Manuals and select the guide for your client. Unfortunately, Colonial Mail does not offer client-level filtering, but you can enable Spam Filtering by logging into the Account Management Console at https://amc.gwu.edu/. Also, many spammers change email addresses every time they send a new message, so please be aware that blocking a particular email address may not stop the spam forever.

Bouncing spam to abuse@gwu.edu is one way of reporting spam. The Information Security team will then email a warning to the spammer and their Internet Service Provider. Here is how you bounce spam messages (with message headers).

ISS currently helps to screen out dangerous viruses with server-level filters. Also, the GWMail (@gwu.edu) e-mail system has a built-in anti-spam solution. ISS recognized that spam has been a consistently worsening nuisance for our community, reflective of the anti-spam problem facing the entire country and world at large. As such, ISS implemented a top-rated enterprise anti-spam solution to complement GWMail.

If you have been spammed, you can always contact Information Security at abuse@gwu.edu. The Information Security team will then email a warning to the spammer and their Internet Service Provider. Although we can't guarantee results, we're glad to help however we can.