Even the most mildly internet savvy know what spam is, but real threats lurk in these annoying messages. Phishing attacks, cyber fraud and email spoofing are constant dangers, and we’re here to help you avoid them.
What This Article Covers:
- What Is Spam?
- Types
- Identification Tips
- Preventive Measures
- Anti-Spam Laws You Need To Know
- Conclusion
This article will discuss different types of spam, tips to identify them and preventive measures.
What Is Spam?
Spam is an unsolicited or unwanted message usually sent to many recipients indiscriminately, without their consent or interest. It’s a plague that haunts users across cyberspace.
Spammers often send messages or emails with links to install malware onto your system. These messages can be a nuisance, cluttering inboxes or appearing as intrusive notifications on various platforms.
How often do you receive unwanted emails, texts, links or other unsolicited digital forms of communication? Spam is annoying by design, and spammers may use multiple techniques to fulfill their intent. These tactics may include unwanted bulk messages, botnets, blank emails, image and snowshoe spam, or more.
Bombarding your inbox is free, and their efforts pull in a fair amount of money. Even if a small percentage of the target users respond, it’s a win-win situation for the spammer.
According to Statista, the United States recently recorded the highest amount of spam emails received daily, followed by Czechia, the Netherlands and France.
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Some of the most common spam types include email, instant messaging, internet forums, classified ads, wikis, Usenet newsgroups, social media, etc.
History
Gary Thuerk, a marketing manager, sent out the first unsolicited email spam in 1978 to promote the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET). It was an ad to market a new computer model that generated millions in revenue for the company.
Spammers use spoofing to hide their identities and avoid accountability for such actions. Here’s how spam grew and changed over the years:
- 1995: Spread of spamdexing.
- 2000: Sending links across social networking sites.
- 2005: Generating fake reviews across eCommerce platforms.
- 2010: Social bots carrying out spam campaigns.
- 2016: Spreading false information about politics, social issues and health by creating websites.
- 2018+: Spammers target AI systems and users.
Why Is It Called Spam?
The term “spam” originates from a 1970 TV comedy show called Monty Python. In the show, you see a woman placing an order from a menu with Spam luncheon meat items. Part of the menu that mentions spam became a joke that a group of Vikings started singing by repeatedly using the word “spam.”
Later in the 1980s and 1990s, people began using the term for repetitive and unwanted messages that popped up in text-based online games, chats and the Bulletin Board System (BBS).
Why Do People Receive Spam?
People receive spam for several reasons, and it’s a persistent issue due to various factors. Let’s take a look at some of them.
- Email Harvesting: Automated software or “bots” allow spammers to scrape the internet for email addresses. These bots can collect email addresses from websites, forums, social media profiles and other online sources.
Once they obtain these email address lists, spammers use them to send out mass unsolicited emails.
- Data Breaches: When there are database breaches, spammers may gain access to significant email addresses. Around 83% of organizations have had more than one data breach.
- Malware Infections: Malware like trojans or keyloggers can infect computers and steal email addresses from address books or stored files.
- Purchased Lists: In some cases, legitimate businesses may sell or share customer email lists with third parties. Unfortunately, these lists can end up in the hands of spammers who use them to send unsolicited emails.
- Botnets: Spammers often operate through networks of infected computers called botnets. They compromise these computers through malware infections and use them to distribute spam. The botnet’s distributed nature makes it difficult to trace the origin of spam emails.
- Affiliate Marketing: Individuals or companies can send spam emails to engage in affiliate marketing. They promote products or services and receive commissions for sales generated through their spam campaigns. Spammers employ deceptive tactics to get recipients to click on links.
- Phishing and Scams: Many spam emails trick recipients into revealing personal information like passwords, credit card details or social security numbers. Phishing emails often mimic legitimate organizations or financial institutions, aiming to deceive recipients into providing sensitive information.
- Lack of Email Filters: Despite advancements in email filters and detection technologies, some spam emails still bypass these security measures. Spammers continuously evolve their techniques to evade detection, making it challenging to eliminate all spam messages.
Everyone receives unwanted messages and junk emails, no matter how careful you are. You most likely shared your email address or phone number while browsing or perhaps filling out online forms.
Service providers often suffer from breaches, and they have no clue. Once the spammers steal the information, there’s no way for them to reclaim it. This is how robocalling services get email addresses and phone numbers.
Even with robust security measures, restricting numbers or email addresses from mass distribution is unavoidable.
There are instances where you may have intentionally given out an email address for business purposes. However, restricting this information from being widespread is out of your control.
Here are some steps you can take to limit such details from spreading:
- Unsubscribe from irrelevant emails.
- Get yourself a paid spam filtering service.
- Mark unwanted emails as junk.
- Use strong and unique passwords.
- Be vigilant about email communications.
- Utilize privacy settings on social media.
- Be cautious with online forms and surveys.
- Avoid using public Wi-Fi networks for personal usage.
Types
A tweet by Norman Agatep, president and managing director at Grupo Agatep, tweeted about how he receives five different spam messages daily and how frustrating it gets. Spammers can use several attack vectors to get to you.
Below are a few spam types you need to watch out for:
Phishing Emails
Phishing is the most common form of spam used to retrieve sensitive information such as credit card details and website logins. A SlashNext State of Phishing Report for 2022 mentions a 61% increase in phishing attacks compared to the previous year.
Phishing is the easiest and yet most dangerous form of cyber attack. You may receive such messages from individuals impersonating an organization, bank or government.
For example, XYZ is a frequent user of online banking services. One day, they receive an email that appears to be from the bank, informing them of a security breach and requesting immediate action to protect their account by clicking on a fake link.
Once clicked, it redirects the user to a fraudulent website designed to mimic the bank’s official login page. Unsuspecting users may unknowingly provide their login credentials and other sensitive information to the attackers.
To avoid such mishaps, verifying the sender’s email address is always advisable. Legitimate emails from banks or other institutions usually come from official domains.
Vishing
Vishing is similar to phishing. The only difference is that vishing happens over the phone. The scammer usually asks for personal information like home address, date of birth, financial credentials and more.
Email Spoofing
Spammers use spoofing to make it seem their email is legitimate. Spoof emails force a user to act on information. The email may contain a message from a renowned organization. Examples of these messages may include a link to verify a recent purchase, a request for updated billing information or payment of an outstanding invoice.
Baiting
Similar to phishing, baiting involves offering exciting discounts and offers in exchange for personal information. The bait comes in multiple forms, like a movie or music download. When the user downloads the bait, the malware installs instantly, giving access to the spammer.
Tech Support Scam
Tech support scams are often related to technical problems. The spammer uses this technique by suggesting you contact tech support via clicking a link, phone call or message.
Quid Pro Quo
This type involves a hacker requesting personal data in exchange for a service. For instance, the hacker gives you a call posing as an IT expert offering free technical assistance.
Malspam
Malicious spam or malware spam is a spam message that carries malware. The moment you click the message or open the email, you install malware like crypto miners, Trojans, ransomware, info stealers, keyloggers, bots and more.
- A Statista report also says that the percentage of malware attacks sent via emails increased from 33 % to 86% between 2018 and 2022.
- An NCC Group report recorded the North American region with the highest ransomware attack rate (50%), followed by Europe (24%) and Asia (10%).
Advance-Fee Scam
Also known as “Nigerian Prince” emails, advance-fee scams send messages promising a financial reward if you send cash in advance. The spammer fools the user by saying the cash in advance is to unlock a larger amount of money or a processing fee.
The scammer can pretend to be your relative who’s in trouble and needs money. But once you make the payment, the scammer disappears.
Spearphishing
Spearphishing is dangerous and difficult to detect. The hacker targets certain recipients and starts gathering information to use against them. They create tailored messages and spoof them, making it look like a coworker or boss sends the email.
Identification Tips
Any unwanted messages you’ve been receiving in bulk are spam. It’s not always easy to identify spam from genuine messages, but these tips can get you started.
- Ensure you know the sender before opening their email and avoid emails from unknown senders.
- Install anti-spam and antivirus software.
- Scan through the email subject. Avoid opening emails with enticing offers, overly sensational claims and excessive punctuation.
- Avoid emails with subject lines such as “sign in immediately” or “update user information.”
- Check for unknown URLs and attachments.
- Do not open emails with typos, content that’s too good to be true or content using threatening language.
- Check for a subject line that says, “It’s not spam”, most of the time, it’s spam.
If you feel your system’s compromised, you probably need to run antivirus software.
Preventive Measures
Every spam attempt is different, and the lasting impacts can be devastating. Here are some strategies you can implement to avoid spam.
Install Cybersecurity
Installing robust cybersecurity software helps identify malware entering your system. It shuts it down before it can cause any damage. Some top examples include names like Acunetix, Kaspersky Endpoint Security, Webroot, Vipre, Keeper and more.
Use Two-Factor or Multi-Factor Authentication
Two-factor and multi-factor authentication prevent cybercriminals from stealing personal information by providing an extra security layer. Hackers or cybercriminals cannot access any information even if the password’s compromised.
Add Spam Filters
Update your email provider’s spam filter regularly. Spam filters use algorithms to detect and divert spam emails into a separate folder, reducing the number of unwanted emails that reach your inbox.
Learn to Spot Phishing
Phishing attacks are dangerous since people tend to click on malicious links unintentionally. You need to learn how to spot phishing tracks and not fall victim.
- Check for missing personal information. If you’re a customer, the company is liable to have your data and will address you accordingly.
- Watch out for grammatical errors and irrelevant attachments.
- Check if the sender’s email address matches the company domain.
Download Antivirus Software
Scan messages for malware. If it contains malicious content, the antivirus software prevents it from downloading to the system. Regularly update your operating system, antivirus software and email client to ensure you have the latest security patches.
Review Privacy Policies
Review privacy policies before subscribing to any content or sharing information. Avoid sharing any information with companies you feel aren’t secure. Ensure the organization has a clear policy on handling your personal information and whether they share it with third parties.
Report Suspicious Behavior
Monitor your browsing habits by filtering your settings and ensuring you report suspicious behavior. Spam filters such as SpamBayes and POPFile help filter unwanted emails.
Anti-Spam Laws You Need To Know
You’ll find anti-spam laws and regulations in various jurisdictions to combat unsolicited and deceptive email communication. Here are a few notable examples:
- CAN-SPAM Act (United States): The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act is a law in the United States that sets rules for commercial email messages.
It requires senders to include accurate header information, allows recipients to opt out of future emails, and prohibits deceptive subject lines and false or misleading content.
- GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) (European Union): While primarily focused on data protection and privacy, the GDPR also addresses unsolicited electronic communications.
Organizations can obtain explicit consent from individuals before sending them marketing emails to maintain clear and transparent information about data processing practices.
- CASL (Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation): CASL is a Canadian law that reduces unwanted electronic messages. Senders will need the recipient’s consent before sending commercial emails.
- Australian Spam Act: The Australian Spam Act prohibits sending unsolicited commercial electronic messages without consent. Senders will have to identify themselves and provide information like an unsubscribe mechanism while honoring unsubscribe requests promptly.
Conclusion
Spammers are everywhere, and they’re in a constant race looking for new ways to steal your information. Sharing information such as email addresses and phone numbers can pose multiple online threats. Ultimately, you’re inviting unwanted trouble.
Now that you know what spam is, follow these tips to avoid spammers and their malicious tactics.
Which preventive measures do you follow to avoid spam? Let us know in the comments below.