Definition
💡 When most people hear the term “unsolicited email,” they typically think of Viagra ads, cryptocurrency scams, and all kinds of other messages that belong to the “spam” folder.
However, it's important to note that the legal definition of "unsolicited email" is more specific. According to the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography And Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act of 2003, "unsolicited email" is officially defined as "any electronic mail message the primary purpose of which is the commercial advertisement or promotion of a commercial product or service (including content on an Internet website operated for a commercial purpose)."
Example
I received a prime example of an unsolicited email just the other day. After forgetting to blur out my email address in a screenshot for an article I wrote, I received a message from a company I had never interacted with, offering guest posting and outreach services I hadn't searched for or expressed any interest in.
This was the subject line: "Your website (davidmorelo.com) isn't ranking well—we can help you change that!"
The mention of my website's address grabbed my attention, but that didn't change anything about the unsolicited nature of the message. In other words, it doesn't matter whether it's written by a real human and sent just to you or created using an AI tool and distributed to thousands of people at the same time.
What Is an Unsolicited Email Called?
As I've mentioned, unsolicited email messages often end up in the spam folder, and that's why they're commonly referred to as "spam emails." This term originated from a Monty Python sketch where Spam (the canned meat product) was difficult to avoid.
Other terms for unsolicited email messages include junk mail (this term is synonymous with spam mail) and cold mail (this term is used mainly in the business context).
There's also phishing, which is a specific type of unsolicited mail whose purpose is to deceive the recipient into revealing personal, financial, or other sensitive information.
How to Stop Unsolicited Bulk Email
Stopping unsolicited bulk email messages can be tricky because you can't exactly force their senders to not message you. The best you can do is to prevent messages from senders you don't know from reaching your inbox.
This is where Clean Email's Screener feature can be of great help, allowing you to put all unknown senders into quarantine until you manually review their messages.
To enable the Screener feature, log in to Clean Email with the mail account you want to protect against unsolicited messages, select the tool in the left pane, and press the Enable Screener button, or toggle the switch at the top left corner of the main Screener window.
In What State is Sending Unsolicited Emails Illegal?
Washington state has a specific anti-spam law making it illegal to send unsolicited commercial emails with false or misleading information. This law, passed in 1998 and upheld by the state Supreme Court in 2001, makes Washington unique in its approach to regulating spam emails in the United States.
