How to Identify and Stop Spam Emails

Spam emails are more than just annoying. They can be dangerous in certain cases. Spam emails can range from harmless marketing messages to malicious attempts to steal your personal information. According to studies, the average office worker receives over 100 spam emails every month. This can clutter inboxes and increase the risk of scams. Learning how to identify, stop, and prevent spam emails is crucial to protect your data, finances, and digital security.

This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about spam emails, how to identify them, how to stop getting spam emails, and stay safe online.

What Is a Spam Email?

A spam email is an unsolicited message sent in bulk, often for advertising, scams, or malicious purposes. Unlike legitimate emails, spam is usually unwanted and sent without your consent. While some spam emails are simply annoying promotional messages, others are far more harmful and can lead to identity theft, malware infection, or financial loss.

Spam emails generally fall into three categories:

• Marketing spam: Emails promoting products, services, or websites. Often sent without permission. Example: “Buy cheap designer bags now—limited stock!”
• Phishing emails: Emails that pretend to be from trusted companies, banks, or government agencies so they can trick you into revealing sensitive information. Example: “Your bank account has been compromised—verify your details immediately.”
• Scam emails: These are the messages that intend either to directly steal your money or to trick you into performing a financial transaction. Example: “You’ve won a lottery—send your bank info to claim your prize.”

Common Spam Email Warning Signs (How to Identify Them)

Recognizing spam emails quickly is necessary for online safety from email scams. The points below are some of the main warning signs with which you can identify the spam:

1. Suspicious sender addresses

In most cases, the spam emails will use email addresses that resemble the real ones, but they contain small differences. For example, an email from support@paypa1.com instead of support@paypal.com is probably a phishing email. Check the full email address of the sender and, not just the name, every time.

2. Generic greetings

Genuine businesses usually address you by your full name. Spam email, on the other hand, may greet you with generic greetings, “Dear User”, “Dear Customer”, or even “Hello Friend”. This happens because spam emails are sent out in bulk to thousands.

3. Urgent or threatening language

Spammers often use such language in an effort to frighten you so as to get you to act quickly without thinking. Statements like “Your account will be terminated immediately” or “If you do not act immediately, you will be penalised” create a sense of urgency and trap users into taking quick action. Usually, authentic companies do not use aggressive tones like that or sound like that.

4. Unexpected attachments or links

If you receive an email with an attachment or a link that you were not expecting, be very careful. It may contain computer viruses or may take you to fake websites where your personal data will be stolen. Even if it looks like it is from someone you know, you should not open the files. Instead, confirm with the sender.

5. Requests for personal or financial information

Legitimate companies never request sensitive information from you via email. All email that requests passwords, PINs, social security numbers, or credit card information should be treated as potential scams.

6. Poor grammar and spelling mistakes

Most of these emails will contain a lot of misspellings, awkward phrases, and poorly formed sentences. Spam email writers often rush through their work. Not every badly written email will be spam, but it is a strong indication.

7. Too-good-to-be-true offers

If you receive emails stating that you’ve won the lottery or are entitled to huge discounts, or have inherited a fortune, always be skeptical and don’t click them, as they are likely email scams. Most of the time, emails with these messages are scams.

Tip: Always hover over links without clicking to see where they really lead. If the URL looks suspicious or unrelated to the supposed sender, do not click.

How to Stop Getting Spam Emails

Once you’re able to identify spam, the next step is reducing the number of unwanted messages. Here’s how:

1. Mark emails as spam

Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, and other email services provide a “Mark as spam” option. Along with removing the email from your inbox, this also allows the email provider to use the feature for filtering similar messages next time.

2. Block the sender

In case of repeated emails from the same sender, the email address should be blocked. When you block a sender, their future messages won’t be able to reach your inbox.

3. Unsubscribe safely

By law, a newsletter or promotional email is obliged to contain a link for unsubscribing. You can click on this link to take yourself off the mailing list. Do not attempt to unsubscribe from spam email, as that may indicate to the spammers that your email is valid.

3. Use email filters

Almost all email services give users the option to create custom filters for the purpose of automatic sorting, archiving, or deleting unwanted emails. For e.g., you can set rules that emails containing certain keywords or those coming from specified domains will be automatically moved to the spam folder.

5. Separate your email addresses

Make a dedicated email address for receiving newsletters, shopping online, and personal emailing. It is a good way that keep your main inbox cleaner and to lessen the probability of receiving ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌spam.

How to Prevent Spam Emails

If you really want to protect your email from spam as well as other cyber threats, then you must be willing to put in some work by taking proactive steps and developing good security habits. The following practices help not only to reduce spam but also to protect your personal information.

1. Limit Exposure of Your Email Address

There is a chance of spammers targeting you by sending unsolicited messages when you share your email on multiple platforms. That is why lessening the exposure of your e-mail address is a very significant initial step:

• Stop public posting: Do not give your email address away on public websites, forums, or social media. Spammers definitely use automated tools for collecting email addresses on these platforms. Only share your email on safe and trusted websites, and learn how to browse the internet safely to reduce exposure to online threats.
• Use secondary or disposable emails: Create a different email address for online shopping, newsletters, and registrations. That way, your main inbox will be safe from spam messages, while phishing attack incidents will also be limited.  Many email providers allow aliases or temporary addresses. You can use these instead of your main email for short-term needs.

2. Exercise Caution with Downloads and Links

Spam emails often contain harmful links or attachments:

• Avoid unknown links or attachments: Do not click links or download files from unfamiliar senders. Always confirm the sender’s identity before interacting.
• Be wary of suspicious links/websites: Only access reputable websites using HTTPS encryption to protect your network security, as some sites may sell or leak user information.

3. Protect Personal Information

• Limit sharing sensitive details: Never share information like your phone number, date of birth, address, or bank information unless you really have to and trust the receiving party.
• Check privacy policies: Before using any service or website, review how they collect, keep, and share users’ data, and then decide if it is worth signing up for.

4. Implement Email Authentication and Filtering

Technical controls help stop spam before it reaches your inbox:

• SPF, DKIM, DMARC: Configure these email authentication records in your domain’s DNS to prevent spoofing and improve email trust.
• URL filtering: Use built-in email security features or third-party tools to scan and block emails containing malicious links.
• Geographic IP filtering: Block emails from regions where you do not expect legitimate communication, using email gateway or platform settings.

Email Security Practices for Protection from Spam

Strong security habits further reduce the risk of spam:

• Use strong, unique passwords: Make your passwords complicated and do not use them more than once for different accounts. A password manager may be a great help if you want to keep passwords safe.
• Enable two-factor authentication (2FA): Makes it harder for the intruder to get access, as along with a password, you need to enter a verification code.
• Keep software updated: Usually, updates fix security issues that have been targeted by hackers.  
• Install antivirus and anti-malware software: Protects against malicious files, links, and websites. Keep it up to date to prevent ransomware, malware, or viruses.
• Monitor account activity: Check login history and security alerts regularly. If you notice anything suspicious, change your password right away.

How Can I Report Spam Emails?

Reporting spam helps protect yourself as well as others. Reporting helps email services improve their filters and protect other users from similar attacks. Do the following:

• Email providers: Use built-in options like “Report Spam” or “Report Phishing.”
• Work emails: Forward phishing emails you receive to the IT department of your organisation.
• Government or consumer protection agencies: In Australia, report scams and phishing to Scamwatch (scamwatch.gov.au), or you can forward spam emails to report@submit.spam.acma.gov.au.

What to Do If You’ve Fallen for a Spam or Phishing Email

If​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ you happen to click a harmful link or gave out sensitive information unintentionally, you should act quickly. Follow the tips below without delay:

1. Change passwords immediately for affected accounts.
2. If your two-factor authentication was not active, it is time to enable it.
3. Check for malware. To do so, use a trusted antivirus software to scan your device. For a business, it’s important to deploy antivirus across the entire business network.
4. Contact your bank or financial institutions if you share any of your financial information.
5. Keep a very close eye on your accounts for any unauthorised or suspicious activities.

Take quick action. This will reduce the damage that spam or phishing attacks may cause.

Additionally, to protect you from such threats, Computer Mechanics is available to provide you with network security services, virus and malware removal, and to protect your personal data. Our specialists offer personalised solutions that not only secure your computer but also make your online activities safe, thus giving you the comfort of being online without ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌worry.

FAQs

What is a spam email?

A spam email is an unsolicited message sent without your permission, often designed to promote products, deceive recipients, or deliver harmful content. These emails are commonly sent to large numbers of people and may pose security or privacy risks if interacted with.

What happens when you get a spam email?

Most spam emails can clutter your inbox. But there are more dangerous ones that may attempt phishing, spread malware, or steal personal or financial information if you interact with them.

Is it safe to open a spam email?

Simply opening a spam email is usually safe, but clicking links, downloading attachments, or replying can be dangerous. These actions may lead to malware infections or phishing attacks.

How do I check spam email?

Most email providers automatically move suspected spam to a Spam or Junk folder. You can open this folder to review messages, but avoid clicking links or downloading attachments from emails you don’t trust.

How do you stop spam emails?

Follow the steps below to reduce spam email:

• Mark unwanted emails as spam
• Block repeat senders
• Use email filters to organise or remove spam
• Avoid publicly sharing your email address
• Use separate email accounts for sign-ups and promotions

How to block spam emails?

Spam cannot be completely disabled, but you can do the following to reduce it: 

• Enable spam filters in your email settings
• Create custom rules to automatically sort or delete unwanted emails
• Block senders you don’t want to receive emails from
• Report spam messages to help your email provider improve filtering

Can I unsubscribe from all spam emails?

You can safely unsubscribe from legitimate newsletters or promotional emails using the official unsubscribe link. However, you should avoid unsubscribing from suspicious or scam emails, as this may confirm your email address to spammers.