Tips for Detecting and Avoiding Spam Emails
Unfortunately, spam emails are not a thing of the past. Learn some tips on how to recognize spam so that the security of your device is never compromised.
Even though email filters have evolved, spam messages can still show up in your inbox. To avoid having your laptop or Android infected by harmful viruses, it’s important to know how to recognize spam. Once you identify that you’re dealing with a spammer, you must dispose of their phishing email safely, so its contents won’t attack your device. An easy way to keep from being affected is by enabling Anti-Hacking feature. Click below to activate Anti-Hacking:
Read More: Personal vs. Corporate Email: Which One is More Secure?
Detecting Spam in Your Inbox
There are a few ways to tell if an email is spam, even when it looks authentic. Here’s how to figure out if a spammer is trying to phish you:
- The email address is suspicious. Look closely at the sender’s email address. If the URL doesn’t match with the establishment’s official URL address, they’re almost definitely a phisher.
- Check the spelling. A major corporation rarely sends out emails with typos or grammatical mistakes.
- They don’t use your name. If the sender doesn’t know who you are, that’s a big red flag.
- Outrageous demands, threats, and/or claims are made in the message. Phishers often try to create a sense of urgency. Their ploy is to get you to open their attachments, send them money, and so forth.
- The email seems too good to be true. If you won some contest you didn’t enter, like the jackpot lottery or a free cruise, it’s definitely a scam.
- There’s no signature. If there are no contact details, be very cautious. Real companies never send emails without a signature. They want their clients to be able to contact them.
Avoiding Getting Phished
Once you identify an email as spam, do not answer it, reveal personal information, or open the attachments. The email’s attachments likely contain viruses or malware, which can be used to steal your identity, spy on your activity, or damage files on the device. The same advice goes for suspicious links. On most computer browsers, you can hover your cursor over a link. If the URL appears fishy, don’t click on it. Finally, if the email comes from an establishment you belong to (i.e. a bank or company), you can contact them directly, in person or by phone, to double-check the authenticity.