Spam is commonly defined as unsolicited bulk e-mail messages. The proliferation of spam has become an extraordinary nuisance for web users. A recent survey in April 2005 found that 28% of users with a personal e-mail account say they are 'getting more spam than a year ago', while 52% consider spam to be a 'big problem'. Georgetown University has experienced a dramatic rise in spam e-mail traffic, and complaints to the UIS Help Desk have increased significantly over the past year.
Types of Spam Basically there are two types of spam, intentional and unintentional. Intentional spam comes from spammers who are soliciting products or attempting to commit fraud. Unintentional spam originates from computers that are infected with a virus or worm that activates e-mail distribution processes in the background. The virus or worm attempts to send bulk messages from the infected computer without the awareness of the computer owner.
Phishing is a special type of spam that is intended to trick you into entering your personal or account information for the purpose of breaching your account and commiting identity theft or fraud.
In a typical Phishing scenario, a false e-mail message is delivered to you. The e-mail appears to come from a legitimate source (see spoofing above), but it's actually a scam. The message may contain a legitimate corporation's logo, and appear to be sent from the corporation's e-mail address. The message may ask you to click a link in the message to update your account, or run a software program to upgrade your computer.
Although the message looks legitimate, it is really trying to compel you to submit your personal and confidential information, which will be used to steal your credentials. Normally you are asked to enter information such as your name, date of birth, place of birth, social security number, mother's maiden name, bank account number, and bank account PIN.
AOL, Yahoo, MSN, Hotmail, Earthlink, Citibank, eBay, and PayPal have all been the subjects of phishing scams. Tips for spotting phishes, viruses, or otherwise fraudulent unsolicited e-mail are reprinted here from UIS's How to Protect Your Computer web page. You can also check Symantec's Hoaxes web page to determine if an e-mail is legitimate.
