Spam or just Junk?

Spam. The word alone makes us cringe at the thought of spending our precious time clearing our inboxes of unwelcome, unsolicited, and annoying junk mail. But is it all genuinely spam? Today’s topic covers the difference between true spam and other emails received as a result of an established relationship with online retailers.

Below is an example of what a piece of spam generally looks like, and the tell-tale signs that let us know that it is spam. It is obvious that this is not a real ‘company’. Our email is part of a list of many unfamiliar email addresses, usually not even the first in the list.  This spam may really be selling a valid product, but more than likely it is an invitation to download a nasty virus. Click on the picture to enlarge.

Spam can have malevolent intentions, such as loading viruses or other malicious software onto your machine. As a general rule of thumb, we suggest simply marking any emails from people or retailers that you do not know as spam. There is no need to open the email, click on any links, or open any attachments, and doing so can lead to an infected computer or identity theft.

If you visit a website belonging to a valid company, this can generate unwanted, but not necessarily unsolicited, emails. Most likely, you were asked for an email address as part of the checkout procedure after doing some well deserved shopping online. Perhaps you didn’t notice that you were agreeing to receive newsletters and special offers. Emails from bonifide companies can flood your inbox, becoming increasingly annoying, although they are benign.
This is a valid online retailer. We previously purchased something from them.

 

While not spam in the true sense of the word, ads from legitimate retailers can become intrusive and tedious to delete. Some retailers send multiple emails daily, and can inundate your inbox.

You can safely un-subscribe from these incessant emails, freeing up your inbox for more important information.

Scroll to the bottom of the valid company’s email to find the unsubscribe link.

You will be directed to the company's website to unsubscribe.

 

If you are unsure or uneasy about distinguishing annoying ads from vicious spam, please contact Mobile PC Solutions so we can help you clean up that email.