(Answer) (Category) PRW.NET FAQ's : (Category) SPAM Control :
What is SPAM ? Why should it be controlled ?
SPAM is the common name for Unsolicited Commercial Email (UCE). It is an email message on a product of service for which you have no interest, analogous to "junk mail" in the post office. Some estimates suggest that between 5 and 10 % of all email traffic on the Internet is SPAM.

SPAM needs to be controlled for several reasons:
  1. Lost Time - Most SPAM messages are deleted but recipients need to spend the time to read a portion of the message and determine whether it is SPAM or not.
  2. Cost - Sending SPAM has no direct costs on the sender but results in costs to the ISP handling email for the recipient. These costs eventually translate into higher access fees.
  3. Fraud - Many SPAM messages come from forged addresses and promote get-rich-quick or pyramid schemes that are fraudulent.
  4. Pornography - Some studies indicate that around 30 % of all SPAM promotes pornographic content and services.
  5. Security - Some SPAM messages carry email viruses and worms.
  6. Illegal - In the United States unsolicited messages that do not follow certain guidelines can be considered illegal.

For more information on SPAM and its control you can visit the following sites:


2001-Sep-13 3:30pm
Next: (Answer) How will the mail server identify SPAM messages ?
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