In today’s world, almost everybody communicates to at least some degree by e-mail. E-mail has become almost as important as the postal service in terms of a means of 
communication. Both individuals and companies alike both depend on this service. The unfortunate part is that like any means of communication, you are going to get those that want to abuse it for monetary gain. We call these folks spammers.
Spammers have been around for almost as long as e-mail has but the intensity of which it is sent out has drastically increased. Because of this, Internet service providers have had to dramatically beef up their systems to help protect their clients. The truth is that some e-mail clients will help protect you more then others. It is also your responsibility to be sure you spam filters are set properly for the maximum benefit.
There are so many different places where you can set up a free e-mail account so you can send messages across the web. You have Yahoo, Google, Microsoft and AOL just to name a few. Some of the most common are the ones that I just mentioned above.
Now that you have that e-mail client set up, there are different ways to manage it. You can manage it directly on the web through the web page of the provider or you can get a third party e-mail management system such as the free Thunderbird or Microsoft Outlook. Either way you go has it’s advantages and disadvantages. If you set up directly with the web based client, you can utilize all the on board spam filters and settings that they have available to you. If you choose to go with a third party client, the spam filters will be managed by the e-mail client you have chosen to use.
Once you are up and running and your spam filters are set, it is time to get to work and start sending e-mails. We have talked a lot about how to protect yourself from receiving spam but how do you prevent Internet service providers from flagging your important documents? One of the first things that will get you flagged as a spammer is by adding too many outgoing links to your signature. Even if it is done with good intensions, often times the automatic spam filters will stop these e-mails in their tracks. If you must use a signature, be conservative with the content. Try not to add an abundance of links to the e-mail before sending it. This will help ensure for a proper delivery of your document.
Another reason that lots of e-mail are never received is because they have too large an attachment. As a general rule of thumb, you should limit attachments to a couple of megs. Most clients have an upper limit that they will accept and you need to check with them to verify that amount.
We have found some providers to be stricter then others in preventing spam. AOL is one of the leaders in both preventing spam to your inbox and also blocking your e-mail as well if it sees it as potential spam. In addition, if you use the AOL desktop software to receive your mail, they will scan all your e-mail for viruses before you receive it. It does not get any safer then that.
If you ever get flagged as a potential spammer, whether intentional or not, you will often times have to contact the abuse department of the provider in order to get unblocked. This is not always an easy task. You will need to provide some information to prove that the block was a mistake on their part. In some instances, the block will lift automatically once you fix the reason your e-mail will not go through. As I mentioned earlier, it is likely your signature that is stopping it.
As you can see, by taking simple precautions you can ensure that both your e-mails arrive at the intended destination and you receive only what you want to receive. Remember that no matter how tight you set the filters, some spam is going to get by. Do not expect a 100% catch of unwanted mail.
By Joe Z.
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