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April 21, 2008

Email Pitfalls For Ezine Publishers

The Problems Of Spam

Spam generally means unsolicited commercial (bulk) email. If your situation is anything like mine, you will receive quite enough email already without having to deal with masses of spam as well. I now receive, on average, over 500 unasked for and unwanted messages a day, and it's still increasing. I know others who get several times that amount. But for ezine publishers there are more things to consider than just the volume of spam coming into your Inbox. As an email distributor, you need to be aware of certain hazards and take steps to safeguard yourself against them wherever possible.

Getting Listed

In order to be able to take such steps effectively it is a good idea first to understand how addresses are collected and distributed. Most email addresses on spam lists are 'harvested' automatically by robots, sometimes called URL spiders. These search for and instantly recognize email addresses on websites, newsgroups etc, and can add many hundreds an hour to their database of addresses until it eventually grows into millions. They are then often touted as (put your tongue in your cheek) 'opt-in' collections and sold by using the same spam methods they have been collected for. Once an email address is on one of these lists it is practically impossible to do anything about it. For instance, many such collections are distributed in hard copy form such as on CD or DVD, and therefore trying to do anything about them is like shutting the gate after the horse has bolted. Preventive measures are far preferable, such as disguising email addresses on websites and in newsgroup posts so that the bots won't recognize them. There are several ways to do this, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. Choosing the right one depends on your circumstances.

The Spamming Mentality

Another thing you need to understand is how spammers think. My guess is that most are ordinary people, probably totally new to the Internet, who get hooked into joining scams or buying lists of email addresses in the hope of making instant riches in return for very little work. In other words, they are the type of people who fall for spam themselves and presumably think that everyone else is as gullible as they are. Not understanding the culture of cyberspace or having any notion of 'netiquette', they mistakenly think that selling on the Internet equates exactly to Mail Order, as it's called in the real world, the only difference being that costs, in the form of email transmissions, are microscopic in comparison. When they discover that response rates are equally microscopic, they do what human beings always do in such situations: they redouble their efforts. Those that have leaders (people in their 'upline', as the jargon goes) are told that it's a numbers game and are urged to ignore all the complaints they've started getting and press on with even greater vigor. Depending how much they've invested in terms of money or time or whatever, this can go on for quite some time before they give up disillusioned. Until that time though, they quite literally 'go for broke'.

Spam Reactions

Unfortunately the recipients of their endeavors, people like you and me, can feel as if they're under attack and that relentless persistence in the face of rejection proves that spammers are either vicious or half crazy (and sometimes they are!). Because of the deluge of rubbish that results from being on one of these lists, some people get quite desperate looking for ways to combat it.

In fact there are only a limited number of sensible options available. Diverting what you can by using your email program's filtering software is the favorite (most modern email applications come with one included). The rest are then deleted by hand. This is time-consuming but changing email addresses is the only other real option, which would be very much a last resort for most people. Desperation though, can sometimes be so great that all reason flies out of the window and herein lies the core problem for ezine publishers. Some spam recipients try to take revenge, and it's these revenge-seekers who can inadvertently or carelessly cause havoc.

Reporting Spam

The commonest way they seek revenge is by trying to 'dob in' perceived perpetrators by reporting them to their ISPs, their web server providers and/or to anti-spam organizations, of which there are several. The trouble with this, apart from the fact that it doesn't make the slightest difference to the amount of spam received, is that many ISPs or web presence providers don't have time to investigate the validity of such accusations and take the easy way out by erring on the side of the complainant. If the complainant is mistaken (for example, if they forget that they ever subscribed to an ezine and just mistook it for spam), and sometimes they are, it's no big deal for them. But it might be a disaster for the innocent ezine publisher.

In the case of anti-spam organizations, some are so fanatical in their determination to hound spammers out of business that they fail to properly check the facts before turning their anger on the so-called wrongdoer - who might, in fact, be entirely innocent.

You would probably be surprised how easy it is to be blacklisted as a spammer, or even have your ezine or website closed down, by an over-enthusiastic ISP or web host.

Address Spoofing

Most spammers try to disguise their real identity by using free temporary return addresses (such as through Hotmail or Yahoo), or even completely false ones, but some try to look genuine by using someone else's address. These are often picked at random from the very spam lists they are using but occasionally a malicious spammer might deliberately choose the address of someone against whom they've decided to harbor a grudge. The reason is obvious. Address spoofing, as it's usually called, is done to avoid the howls of anger that their spam generates, so what better way to get even with someone than by arranging for them to receive it instead? This is why I advise against reacting to spam by trying to track down the real people behind it in the vain hope of reasoning with them. Not only are they unlikely to listen to reason but they commonly retaliate in just this way against anyone who tries to point out the error of their ways.

I've always stood firmly against spam and, as a result, have been attacked in this way more than once. One of my self-appointed enemies took it upon himself (or herself) to enter spam on as many website guestbooks as he/or she could find and sign off each entry with my email address. I found out about it when someone wrote a complaining email to me. She was understandably incensed that someone who took such a strong stand against spam (she had checked my site) had resorted to spamming her guestbook. I politely asked her to check her site statistics, which should prove that it was someone other than me who had visited her site that day. I have no idea whether she bothered or not because I never heard from her again.

Mail Bombing

Or they might try another way to get back at you. After I wrote two articles about the new scourge of what I call website spam, otherwise known as Scumware (see 101 Internet Answers), I was bombarded with more spam as well as hundreds of completely pointless messages, all aimed at the autoresponder addresses I'd set up for people to download the articles. I had to close down the autoresponders and use a different site address to stop the campaign before it completely jammed my server and its associated mailbox. So beware! We're talking about near psychopaths here.

What To Do

First, always include unsubscription procedures clearly in every issue of your ezine. Avoid using the word 'unsubscribe' though, as it's commonly filtered by anti-spam software. Make sure your instructions actually work (correct unsub address etc). Stick to the same format so that your ezine is instantly recognizable to subscribers. Include an identifier in the email subject field for the same reason. This can also be a help to your subscribers in that they can use it, if they wish, to filter your posts straight into a predetermined folder for later reading. Consider a 'double opt-in' system for new subscriptions. And so on. If your subscribers become familiar with what your publication looks like and the methodology you use they are far less likely to mistake it for spam.

It is also essential to keep records, including actual emails whenever possible, of all subscriptions and other relevant material so that you can show them in your defense in the event of an unjust accusation. It shouldn't be necessary to prove your innocence; the burden of proof should be on the accuser but, unfortunately, that isn't how it works in the real world.

© Mike Alexander 2002 (Revised 2003)

 

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