I used to just delete the spam email as soon as I received it but now I
have a new procedure. I reply with the following message:
"Thanks for the email. It doesn't look like I
can use your services at this time but HEY, don't let that stop you from possibly using
mine. I am starting my own business in (a geocities
no-no). Please go to my website at (a geocities no-no) and see
what I can do for you. I sure hope to be hearing from you soon..."
I think you will find that in most cases (about 95% for me) you will
receive a message within 3 hours that says the message was undeliverable. Now why if a
company or individual is offering a product or service, would they use an email address
that doesn't work? Sound a little fishy to you? Sure does to me. If the message goes
through, fine and dandy but if it comes back, it makes me glad that I didn't jump on that
little bandwagon.
I would at least like for Congress to get over this Clinton thing (go ahead and impeach
the liar) and pass some legislation regulating SPAM. At least make it so, if you send
email, it has to have a valid return address on it.
Here's an example of the full header of a message I received recently.
You will notice that my email address is nowhere in the header. Now I say that if I give
my address out to be used for spamming, that is one thing. But Earthlink/Sprint should not
allow messages to go to their customers that are not addressed to them. This is not my
fault.
Received: from mail1.nitco.com (mail1.nitco.com [205.216.12.230]) by
crow.prod.itd.earthlink.net (8.8.7/8.8.5) with ESMTP id NAA08618;
Mon, 5 Oct 1998 13:48:22 -0700 (PDT) From: wallstreet40@usa.net
Received: from 205.216.12.230 (1Cust253.tnt17.atl2.da.uu.net [153.36.116.253])
by mail1.nitco.com (8.9.1/8.9.1) with SMTP id PAA12749; Mon, 5 Oct 1998 15:46:36 -0500
(CDT)
Message-Id: <199810052046.PAA12749@mail1.nitco.com>
Date: Mon, 05 Oct 98 16:51:57 EST
To: smallcap30@hotmail.com
Subject: Pla.net and IBM Intranet Partnership !!
Reply-To: smallcap30@hotmail.com
X-UIDL: fd0bd0cecc8d973f762d8cd80fcc3cd4 Status: U X-Mozilla-Status: 9001
Notice the "to" line right below the date. That is not my address and I should
not have received it. I guess since Earthlink/Sprint is such a sorry ISP, I'll have to
spend the money buying a mail filter program to keep this stuff out. Also notice the
"reply to" line. That is not the address of the sender and probably not valid
either.