Are You A Spammer?

[Lyte]

Love this article! It makes two really important points! I for one don't like getting lots of cute pictures, jokes, and wacky stories... yadda yadda. I don't mind the occasional forward but as soon as you respond with "Yeah, that is cute... interesting... whatever." They start forwarding you everything!

And don't send an email to multiple recipients unless you're darn sure it's not to get you in trouble! And don't send an email to multiple recipients if your email is of a personal nature... e.g. an invitation. People want to be know they are special and thought of specifically. Sending out a mass email regarding a topic that's best received one-to-one makes people feel as though they are just one of many

Now, if you can't avoid a mass email, then definately use the blind carbon copy feature on your email. Look for a tutorial on this for your Outlook Express!!

Are You A Spammer?
Donna MacMillan

Spam, as we all know, are those pesky unsolicited emails our mail boxes are filled up with everyday. At their best, they are barraging us with advertising for things we have no interest in and at worst they bring the potential of viruses, identity theft, and possible destruction to our data files, software programs and computers. And they are produced and distributed by “evil” people out to annoy us or destroy us. So how does this horrid activity relate to you?

Do you forward cute little pictures, jokes, sayings, news stories, etc through your mail lists consisting of friends, family, and colleagues? Then if so, you can be considered a spammer. But I am bringing laughter and knowledge to those I care about, you say. But along with those enlighten messages you also could be spreading viruses and other harmful invasions to your loved ones computers. You see, the individuals that develop these destructive programs know that the fastest way to get them spread through out the internet is to imbed them into those jokes, pictures, sayings, and news stories. And those free email cards fall into this category as well. It was recently announced that hackers and virus developers found these cards a perfect way to propagate their devilish toys. Try writing from your heart to your friends and family instead of sending these modern day versions of chain letters.

And sending out an email to multiple people without taking the time to use a bcc (blind carbon copy) is just impolite. Would you want a group of people who you probably don’t know and have never met to have your personal information? Of course not, so why do you think your friends and family want you sharing their personal email address to everyone on your mailing lists. An example of how this can really backfire happened to a friend of mine recently. A local auto dealer’s repair department mistakenly sent out a customer service survey using their mailing list instead of sending out each survey separately. One customer who was not happy at all with their service took the time to send each and every customer included in the mailing list a very descriptive answer as to his dissatisfaction. I am sure that many felt as my friend did – first of all very angry that his email address was given out to many strangers, and secondly that perhaps he should be changing his mechanic. This mistake may have caused this company a major reduction in their customer’s faith in their service.

So remember, don’t spam those you care about. It’s not funny, inspiring, or entertaining. And if you are anything like me, it just ends up being deleted without being read or looked at. After all, if you really cared about me, you wouldn’t want to risk the safety of my computer and data.