Spamming is sending unwanted electronic communications, often promoting questionable products or services, and can involve identity theft or Internet fraud. It involves hiding the user’s identity, sending emails to a large number of addresses, and not being chosen by the recipient. Junk mail is a common type of spam, as well as phishing, which involves unsolicited emails that appear to come from trusted businesses. While spamming is not very effective, phishing can be successful in obtaining private information. The term “spam” comes from a Monty Python skit.
Spamming involves sending unwanted electronic communications and is often considered junk mail. Spammers trick people into reading emails through enticing words in the subject line. Most spam is related to commercial advertising promoting questionable products or services. Often, sending spam is an attempt to commit identity theft or other types of Internet fraud.
The act of spamming has three common elements. With spam, the user’s identity and e-mail address are deliberately hidden. Email is sent to a large number of email addresses, often at the same time. Also, spam is not required; the recipient intentionally did not choose to send the email to their account.
One type of spam is undoable USENET spam. USENET is an online discussion group. Spammers who conduct this type of spamming hope to target individuals who post infrequently and are more casual observers. Spam is a single message delivered to 20 or more newsgroups. The message is a stream of advertisements or posts that have nothing to do with any of the topics being discussed.
One of the most common types of spam is junk mail. This type of spam is sent directly to an individual’s email account. Spammers can obtain addresses through various methods, including USENET messages, searching for addresses on the Internet, or obtaining e-mail lists. Sometimes spam can be easily identified before opening, as the subject line may contain an obvious advertisement or simply be incomprehensible.
Chain letters, pyramid schemes, and get-rich-quick schemes are examples of unsolicited email. Other types of spam advertise pornographic articles, unknown companies, and inferior health care products and treatments. However, advertising spam isn’t the only type of junk mail; other types can be much more dangerous.
More sophisticated spam, called phishing, involves unsolicited emails that appear to come from real, trusted businesses, such as banks, shopping sites, and payment services. Spammers send emails stating that immediate action should be taken with your account. These schemes rely on people believing the email and responding with critical information, such as credit card numbers and Social Security numbers, or clicking a link to a fake site that asks for account information and passwords. Spammers can then use this information to steal a person’s identity or make purchases on behalf of victims.
While spammers face a great deal of trouble, unsolicited emails aren’t very effective. It is estimated that 5% of email users will respond to a phishing email. Less than 15% of people actually read spam and less than 5% will buy a product from spam being sent. Phishing is often more successful; one study found that nearly half of people who visited a fake phishing website submitted private information.
The term “spam” is believed to come from a Monty Python skit from the 1970s. In the sketch, all items on a menu contain SPAM® corned beef. The term for excessive multiple email became popular in the 1990s.
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