Spam
Spam is unsolicited e-mail. It is often commercial in nature and may contain viruses or other malware.
Legitimate, non-spam e-mail is sometimes called ham.
Contents
Preventing
The best way to protect yourself from receiving spam is to never give out or publish your e-mail address.
If you ever need to sign up for something online with your e-mail address, make sure to review the website's privacy policy and if possible, opt out of any solicitation or information sharing.
Spam Do's and Don'ts
Don't
- Respond to any messages you know are Spam.
- Don't try and unsubscribe, unless you know you subscribed in the first place.
- Share your password.
- Follow e-mail links, especially if they ask for your credentials.
- Open unexpected or unknown attachments.
Do
- Check sites privacy polices before supplying your email address
- Use a disposable email address.
Controlling
Common Types of Spam
Urgent Requests
This type of email asks you to respond to the email and verify your credentials to keep your account open. Gustavus Technology Services will never ask you to verify your email. We ask that you change your password yearly. Keep this password change date in mind, and if someone requests you change your email password outside of this range, please call the Technology Helpline.
Resumes
This type of spam email asks you to look at the senders resume and the sender asks to work for your department as an intern. This spam is especially tough to ignore during the hiring season. One tip to decide if this email is legit or not is to check out the sender's From Address, as well as it is sent to the right search committee member, and to make sure the sender is specific in the email in terms of the job that they are applying for. If it seems suspicious, it most likely is.
FedEx or other package delivery
This type of email is designed to let you know that there is a problem with your package delivery. To verify if this is real or not, be sure to find your tracking number, and visit/type in a browser, ups.com, fedex.com, other shipping company, and type in the tracking number. If it seems suspicious, it most likely is.
W-2/payroll
This type of spam is designed to steal employee information such as social security numbers, salary information, and other details about your employees. The senders disguise themselves as the President or CEO to appear official. If you are unsure if this real request, please verify with your supervisor and/or President/CEO. This type of information is not meant for sending via email.