SPAM Not!

We all get it.  We get it in a lot of different ways: email, sms, fax, twitter, im, irc, snail mail, etc.  But what do we do about it?  I’m sure you’ve heard that you don’t reply and you don’t click those links that say remove.

Do delete it?  I do.  I hit the “This is spam” button, it goes into my “spam folder” and eventually  disappears.  Is this the best way to do it?  Probably not.

Technically, you are supposed to write to the web site and ask to be removed for their mailing list.  Also technically, they are supposed to comply.  I’m obviously only speaking for US based spam.

If the company does not remove you, you can report them to the FTC.  My recommendation is that you skip the email and just report them.  If they’re a spammer, they won’t remove you and by sending them an email, you validate that you are a good email address.

To report someone to the FTC, use the FTC Complaint  Assistant.  There isn’t just a spaam option, you need to answer a few questions.  Say that you are unhappy about business practices and then select internet.  At that point you’ll get a screen that allows you to select spam:

In the assistant you’ll navigate through several pages entering information about your complaint.  You’re allowed to enter as much or as little personal information as you like.  There is also a screen to list as much company information as you have available:

There is also a comments page and you can cut and paste the entire spam email here.  Be sure to include full headers as this will help the FTC track the company down.

You one complaint probably won’t get much done but the more people who complain about a company, the more likely the FTC is to do something.  The FTC will look for a pattern of abuse over time before doing anything.  Everyone can help with that.

Still, it’s kind of a PITA and hitting the delete key is soooo much easier.  What do you do?

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