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Slightly over 92 percent of all e-mail monitored by security software vendor Sophos between
January and March this year were spam messages. (Spam as in unwanted junk e-mail, not the tinned luncheon meat despite the misleading image to the left). The company
analyzes millions of new messages on a daily basis. Sophos are one of many companies offering technical solutions to the spam problem. These all have the same basic objective, identify the 92% and stop it in it's tracks. There are many different technical approaches to this task but all of them are imperfect with the result that an increasing number of legitimate e-mail messages are blocked. Indications are that the free "consumer" e-mail services such as MSM, Yahoo, GMail etc are particularly agressive in this regard to the point that e-mail is becoming a less than reliable means of communication.
Read on for some actions you can take to at least side step the worst of this menace.
The majority of Spam is relayed by hacked computers to e-mail addresses harvested by robots (software that searches the internet looking for e-mail addresses). Mal-ware (software with malevolent intent) gets introduced to a users computer either through e-mail, visting an infected website (and this could be an apparently reputable website that has been hacked), or any of the many other means of communication possible. It is therefore essential that every computer is protected against these kinds of "infections", this means employing the right defensive technology and proper infrastructure management. That's all well and good, you can take steps to avoid your computer being hi-jacked, but you can't do anything about the millions of unprotected computers out there that are merrily sending spam without their owners being aware. Spam reduction technology is good but it's not perfect. I would say it is impossible to be active out on the internet without attracting some kind of spam. Most websites involving any kind of interaction require you to leave an e-mail address as part of the registration process and this is just one of the many ways your e-mail address can become a target for spam.
Some simple steps you can take to minimise your exposure to spam ....
- Use "disposable" (free) e-mail addresses for one-off communications - once that address starts to attract spam you can stop using it.
- Only use your "business" e-mail address for formal business communications with trusted contacts
- Never publish an e-mail address on a website. Always use contact forms protected by captcha, or similar technique, to prevent machine input.
- Ensure that any computers you use are protected by up to date anti-virus and anti-malware software
- Only install essential applications (in the jargon this reduces the "attack surface" - the fewer applications you run the fewer vulnerabilities you'll be exposed to)
- Keep the applications you do used patched up to date.
Now usually companies stop their employees from using consumer e-mail from work machines, but given that it's impossible to stop staff using e-mail for private purposes there is an argument that consumer e-mail access should be allowed, at least that would keep some of the spam out of the corporate system. Another illustration of how an effectrive computer use policy is as important for your IT security as any physical measures you might take.
If you are unsure about how your systems stand up contact me and ask for a security audit. To read the full Sophos report click here
Why Spam?
Ever wondered why bulk unsolicited e-mail is called Spam? me to, so I looked it up and according to Wikipedia...
"It is widely believed the term spam is derived from the 1970 Monty Python SPAM sketch, set in a cafe where nearly every item on the menu includes SPAM luncheon meat. As the waiter recites the SPAM-filled menu, a chorus of Viking
patrons drowns out all conversations with a song repeating "SPAM, SPAM,
SPAM, SPAM... lovely SPAM, wonderful SPAM", hence "SPAMming" the
dialogue. The excessive amount of SPAM mentioned in the sketch is a
reference to British rationing during World War II. SPAM was one of the few meat products that avoided rationing, and hence was widely available."
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