Top 5 Methods to block spam emails
One of the nuisances we regularly face with our emails is the number of junk or spam mails we keep on receiving. Though there is no a rock solid method to avoid them, let us delve into some of the possible measures to tackle the junk mail.
Junk mail or spam is the inevitable evil faced by all of us email users. Most of us get heaps of such mails on a daily basis. Having to dig deeper into the unwanted mails to reach up to the mails that we really want can be real headache. Though it is not possible to get rid of spam in its entirety, we can resort to some means to reduce the number of spam mails.Configure your mail client
Most of us use Outlook or Outlook Express as our default mail client. Digging a little into the options will let you configure it to take control of the unwanted mail. Under Home tab, head on to Delete group and select Junk. You can configure Safe Senders list wherein only the emails from the included email addresses will be delivered to your inbox. This may not be a feasible option as it can result in missing some important messages. 
You can configure a Blocked Senders list. It could be a better option as you can go on adding addresses to the list based on the spam mails you have been receiving. 
One more option provided by Outlook is to set rules. You can get to the rules under Home tab again. Dig into Move group and select Rules.
You can set the client to filter the mail based on the sender's name, email address or subject line. You can also configure it to filter out a mail containing a particular phrase or word. The junk mail so filtered can be configured to be directly sent to the trash, or better still deleted from the server itself. Protect your Email address against spam
Although the best way to stay away from spam is to be invisible to the spammer. Communicating only with the addresses you trust will eliminate the spammers from detecting your email address. However, simple as it may seem to be, yet it is difficult to accomplish. There are many reasons for it.
Most of the spammers get your email address by harvesting. You may be a member of a bulletin board, a forum or a chat room wherein you need to provide your email address. The spammers may run scripts on these sites and collect email addresses. Most of us tend to signup for mailing lists or unknown online contests. Such activities make your email address exposed to spammers. While communicating in forums or even on social networks make it a point to share your email ID via private messages rather than in public. Use third party software for filtering junk
There are several third party software available which specialize in filtering your inbox. You can opt for them either as free downloads or purchase them. These applications search for the hidden tags inside a message. They also identify the messages the text or images used in the email.
Some of the applications that can help as spam filters are MailWasher, Cloudmark and SPAMfighter. Choose the one that suits you. SPAMfighter is one of the trusted names in this context.
Also Check Out: Review of SPAMfighter Pro: An effective solution to defend Spam e-mailsUse a throw-away email address
Though it may appear silly for some us, but it can be used as an effective to get rid of junk mail. Get yourself a email address just for the spam. Provide this email ID in places where you expect email harvesting. Providing this email address to sign up for unknown online contests or chat rooms will help you protect your primary mailbox from email harvesting. Since you do not expect to get any important mail in this inbox, you safely check it once in a while and delete the junk folder in a go. Use server side protection
There are some ISPs who provide a package which includes spam filters. They ensure that the email is identified before delivery. One issue with such server side protection is the fact that you do not have much customization offers from the user end.
Apart from these measures keep the following points in mind and make a habit to follow them - Final Thoughts
Though there are claims by email service providers and ISPs about increased protection against the junk mails, most of them stay unrealistic. Junk mails are something we need to learn to live with. But still, using an appropriate method among those above can help reduce the number to quite an extent.
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