Definition
💡 A spam email, often referred to as a junk email, is an unsolicited and irrelevant message that's typically sent in bulk to a large number of recipients. Spam emails can range from harmless advertisements to malicious phishing scams, and they can clutter up users' inboxes and pose a threat to their online security.
Example
One infamous example of a spam email is the "Nigerian prince" scam, where the sender claims to be a wealthy individual needing assistance to transfer a large sum of money, promising a significant reward in return. While this type of spam is easily recognizable, not all spam messages are so obvious.
Sophisticated phishing messages can be virtually indistinguishable from genuine messages, mimicking legitimate senders to trick users into providing personal information, clicking on malicious links, or downloading a malware-infected file.How to report spam email
All major email services use spam filters to protect their users against spam email messages. The effectiveness of these filters varies (Gmail's filters are known as highly effective while Outlook's filters often struggle with false positives), so it's important to know how to manually report a message as spam.
Generally, you need to right-click the suspicious email and look for an option to mark it as spam or junk. If you have the message already opened, then you can look for the same option in the toolbar or menu of your email client. By selecting this option, the email is moved to the Spam or Junk folder, and the email provider’s algorithms are updated to recognize similar messages in the future.
What is the danger of spam and junk email?
Spam and junk emails are more than just a nuisance; they can also be serious threats to users' online security and privacy. Here are some examples of what makes spam so dangerous:
- Inbox clutter and wasted storage space: Spam emails can quickly fill up your inbox, making it harder to find important messages.
- Distractions: Notifications from spam emails can interrupt your workflow and reduce productivity.
- Scams: Many spam emails are designed to trick users into sending money, revealing personal information, or clicking on malicious links.
- Identity theft: Spam emails can be used to steal users' personal information, such as login credentials, Social Security numbers, and credit card numbers.
- Security threats: Often, spam emails contain malware attachments or links that, when clicked, can download viruses, spyware, or other malicious software onto your device.
- Network strain: The large volume of spam emails can put a strain on email servers and networks, slowing down the delivery of legitimate messages.
