>Date: Fri, 7 Feb 2003 09:32:57 -0600 >From: James Rohde <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: How can we do it with CE & AS? > > >Saw this in an Apple eNews recently and wondered if (using an AppleScript >or two) those of us running Emailer (who haven't gone to Jaguar or even >OS X yet) could get the same effect with. Maybe or maybe not, but I >figure that one of our scripting wizards might be able to tell. > >Jim Rohde > >------------- >From Apple eNews: February 6, 2003 >------------- > >>5. Delivering a One-Two Punch to Spammers >>......................................... >> >>Yes, Mac OS X Mail can help you deliver a staggering blow to >>spammers. Simply pull down the Mail menu, choose Junk Mail, and >>select Automatic. The next time you receive email, Mail will >>move suspect email into a Junk folder. >> >>Now you're ready to deliver a real knockout punch to spammers >>by taking advantage of yet another potent spam-fighting weapon: >> >>1. Click on the Junk folder. >>2. Type Command-a to select all of the email in the Junk folder. >>3. Choose "Bounce to Sender" from the Message menu. >> >>Mail will return the selected messages to the senders marked >>"User unknown," making them think your email address invalid, >>encouraging them to drop you from their lists, and, thus, >>eliminating spam at its source. >> >>http://www.apple.com/macosx/jaguar/mail.html > This technique was discussed endlessly here in the past with the consensus eventually concluding that because million(s)-message spam is so cheap, it costs the spammers more to clear there lists of supposedly "user unknown" addresses than to simply continue send "non-deliverable" spam.
My conclusion is it is more trouble than it is worth to bounce. I've set up mail actions so 95-98% of spam is routed to a "potential spam" folder that I review at the end of every day. My mail actions route messages from all users in my address book to appropriate folders, route all messages with addresses ending in "edu" (my company sells reference books to college and university libraries, so I get lots of mail from "[EMAIL PROTECTED]) to a customers folder, and a mail action that sends all messages with "internet header" containing "html" into potential spam folder. The "HTML" action alone takes care of 90% of the spam. I have 101 mail actions-mostly to route messages from our editors, employees, printers, other business contacts, and mail lists. All spam but a minute fraction is correctly sent to my potential spam folder. For me, it was easier to create a series of rigorous mail actions that handle the inevitable deluge of spam than try to avoid getting spam in the first place. As always, YMMV. Cheers. bevon Berndt von Wahlde Academic International Press PO Box 1111 * Gulf Breeze FL 32562-1111 850 934 0953 (fax) / [EMAIL PROTECTED] (e-mail) / www.ai-press.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "it's a perfect day for making out to wake up with a smile without a doubt to burst grin giggle bliss skip jump sing and shout let's get happy! it's a perfect day for doing the unstuck" --the cure ___________________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe send a mail message with a SUBJECT line of "unsubscribe" to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> or <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
