Simple. Do not reply to spam; do not entertain it; set your spam filters on high alert and if any gets through, then bin it.

But first, listen carefully to what I’ve got to say. Now, this is between you and me don’t forget. I happen to know that this guy in Africa who died, leaving a personal fortune of some $10 million. Now, as he had no family and died intestate, his funds are sitting in the Wotoali State Bank. Now, there’s a rule in the little country of Wotoali; anyone who is not a citizen of Wotoali can come and claim the money left by a person without a will. The state has no right to it and there is a clause that anyone from outside the country who pays a release fee to the central bank, can claim the money. Very few rich people die without leaving a will, but it does occasionally happen and when it does, obviously the Wotoali State Bank keeps it quiet. My contact is a guy who works in the bank. Now, this release fee is only $200 and as my guy only gets paid a $1 a month, we can bung him $200 as well, and he’ll be a happy boy. So, let’s do a deal. You wire me across $400, I’ll give $200 to the Bank, and $200 to my contact. Then, I’ll give the bank your details, and they’ll wire you $10 million. And I’ll take a $1 million for my telling you all this.

Okay, okay, what a load of rubbish. But millions of such emails are sent out every day and unbelievably, quite a few people respond to them. It’s human nature. Right, yes, for just $400, someone is going to hand over $10 million. Why is it that for many people, when it comes to promises made via emails, they must suddenly disconnect their brain?

If someone offers you free money, then the likelihood of it being a con is, from 1 to 10, 9.9 times recurring, if not 10. People don’t offer you free money, full stop. If I knew how to get hold of $10 million, would I then explain it in detail to someone else, and only get 10% for myself. And why would I need to get $400 from you to do it. Come on, how difficult can it be to spot these emails.

There are admittedly less of these nowadays, but at one time they did seem to support the national economy of Nigeria as a legitimate business. So, if one gets through your spam filter, have a careful read. They are actually quite funny. The language is tortuous and riddled with mistakes (mind you, this writer isn’t so hot on African dialects, so why we expect good English is a puzzle) and the email has obviously been sent to millions of others, so when they say this is your chance, they’re actually talking to another million other people with the same opportunity. So, the idea is simple. No-one is going to offer you such a deal. And if you ever do become a beneficiary of someone else’s largesse and are in line for a few millions, you’d have to complete so much paperwork and talk to so many lawyers, that you’d be exhausted by the time the lengthy process was finished.

Okay, here endeth the lesson: do not believe this absurdity. Read one to educate yourself, then bin it.
A group of people do go further, and they can be found on the internet, although emulating there idea is not a good idea for the rest of us. They try and turn the tables on the spammers. Lets take my example above. They would email a reply to the originator of the spam and say yes, sounds great, I’d love to get hold of the $10 million. But, hey, I’m a bit strapped at the moment. If you were to send me $100, I could get to my bank (I don’t have electronic banking and I live in the countryside) and withdraw the $400 you need. And, amazingly, this has worked, with the spammer sending his intended target $100. Maybe the spammer who spends all day writing such emails, is pretty gullible himself. Still, as I said, do not try this. Let others who know what they are doing have the fun, but rest assured, spammers do occasionally get their come-uppance.

Okay, enough of that. What is perhaps worse nowadays is the more subtle emails that can easily trap many of us.

A spammer creates an email with a bank’s logo and includes plenty of security phrases and the type of copy you’d expect from your bank. The message is simple, and always on the same theme. There’s been some sort of problem and if you don’t access your online bank website, then your service will be stopped. To avoid this, please enter your details by pressing this link. You innocently press the link and you find yourselves at a site which looks like your bank, but actually isn’t. You fill in your details, press the various buttons and that’s it: you’ve handed all bank usernames and passwords over to a person who will then access your bank account, and drain your money.

Now, there are lots of tips to spot these emails. Look at the address (and the website address), which will include bits of the bank’s name, but them other bits which give the game away; the odd use of the logo (they won’t have spent a fortune on design); on the awkward use of the language (many come from foreign parts); and, the dead giveaway, when they arrive in your inbox and you don’t even bank with them.

But, despite all these things to look for, there’s one better way. Don’t even read them. Send them straight to the waste bin. Your bank will not demand such things of you by email. If they do, then they are at fault and tell them so. You communicate with your bank on such matters via the post, or telephone. If your bank starts sending you emails about a service about to stop, or asking for details, ring them up instead. Simply, do not react to this type of email, ever.

In fact, whatever unsolicited offer you get in your inbox, from Viagra to ways of finding your next partner, bin them. Do not rely on them and do not show even a flicker of interest. If something does tickle your fancy, bin the email, and search via one of the engines to find their site, effectively going through your protection suite to make sure you are safe from viruses etc.

Now, how to avoid spam in the first place? You can’t. With over 80% of email traffic spam, the chances are you will get some. The good news is that the internet service providers and other email providers are getting better at spotting spam. So choose a provider that asks you to do a number of things to project your inbox from such rubbish.

So, don’t ever reply to spam emails and never click on their links. You will not only legitimise your email address, it will then be sold to other spammers with the incentive that you are a ‘sucker’ and ripe for the picking. And for those that get caught, your value to other spammers is immense and you will be a highly prized commodity. In the spammers eyes, once a sucker, always a sucker. Cruel, but with a degree of logic.

One word of warning though. No matter how tempted you might be, do not send a witty, or abusive reply back. Not only are the people behind these emails quite unsavoury, they don’t take sarcasm, or criticism that well. If you send them an abusive email back, then they have the ability to literally send you millions of emails, crashing your email system and your computer. So, bite your tongue and delete them, or send them onto people who’d like to know about them. They have the resources to do some thing, you do not.

Okay, spam is a modern day scourge. Do not encourage them, remember: do not reply, do not click on their links and do not believe them. Simple.

Email Security & The Fight Against Spam – Recap

• help fight against spam;
• do not fall for email scams;
• some ‘bank’ emails harder to disbelieve;
• send all dodgy emails straight to bin;
• can’t avoid some spam;
• don’t fight back – ignore.