The two most common ways to stop Spam (email that you didn't want or request trying to sell you something, or even launch malicious attacks) is to use word filters or blacklists. Blacklists are basically lists of know domains that send out unsolicited email, which is very difficult to keep accurate. Spam filters use software and a set of rules and words that automatically determines if the email is Spam and either deletes it or sends to special area for your review.



Suggested keywords for Spam Filters are known to be words used in subject lines or body of Spam emails. Spam filters can be used at the server or client level. Mail servers can be set up to look for these terms and so can email clients that exist on the user's computer. Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, and Windows Mail are all popular email clients that can use filtering to eliminate Spam.

Each program may have a different setup but they all work the same, they use a list of known words that are common to spam. If you look at your email client manual or hit the help button you can find the specific instructions to setup your filters and how you want to manage the emails that are marked as Spam.

Spam filters have their pros and cons. But most people are ecstatic if they can reduce the Spam to four or five a day. The pros are you take an active role and update your list of words to keep up with the new stuff that comes out weekly. You have the advantage of reviewing the emails to check to make sure none are of value. The only con I see is that you do have to check all emails just in case someone you want an email from uses one of the words in your list.

Most filters have the ability to put email addresses or domains that you can “white list”, which means you want that email delivered regardless of the words that are in the email. That helps to keep the emails that you want coming through and keeps the misdirected emails down to a minimum.

Here's a good list of suggested keywords for Spam Filters to start with on your initial setup. You can go I and remove or add new words that you find useful. Some of these words can be used in a legitimate email but most are good examples of email content you don't want.

Free!, 50% off!, Click Here, Call now!, Subscribe, Earn $, Discount!, Eliminate Debt, enlargement, Double your income, You're a Winner!, Reverses Aging, "Hidden", Information you requested, "Stop" or "Stops", Lose Weight, medication, Multi level Marketing, Million Dollars, Opportunity, Compare, Removes, Collect

Amazing, Cash Bonus, Promise You, Credit, Loans, Satisfaction Guaranteed, Serious Cash, Search Engine Listings, Act Now!, All New, All Natural, Avoid Bankruptcy, As Seen On…, Buy Direct, Casino, Cash, Consolidate Your Debt, Special Promotion, Easy Terms, Get Paid, Guarantee, Guaranteed, Great offer, Give it away, Giving it away, Join millions, Meet Singles, MLM, mortgage, No cost, No fees, Offer, One time, Online pharmacy, Online marketing, Order Now, Please Read, Don't Delete, Save up to, Time limited, Unsecured debt or credit, Vacation, Viagra, Visit our web site, While Supplies last, Why pay more?, Winner, Work at home, You've been selected

Some people add these words with asterisks or spaces in between the letters, which is a common trick used by most spammers. It's up to you how much you want to tighten down the list. Some adjustment is always necessary until you find the right amount of prevention verses Spam emails that slip through.

There are software programs that do all this for you. Some use the blacklists, some use filtering. These programs install inside your email client or right between the email client and the mail server. They maintain the list of both words and blacklisted domains. All you do is watch for emails that slip through and mark them, and check your discarded emails to make sure no legitimate ones got tagged.

Either way can really help to reduce the amount of Spam. I've seen people get rid of 98% of the worthless emails they receive. Like junk mail you get in your snail mail, you can't get rid of 100% but you can limit it to less than a few a day. Eliminating the aggravation alone is worth the trouble for most people.

Using the above suggested keywords for Spam filters gets you off to a fast start. And this list will catch most of the current email solicitations you get tired of deleting everyday. There's no perfect solution to Spam but using filters helps a lot.