A Word on Spam
By: David Fishman
dfishman@ileadmedia.com
There is a general negative attitude
associated with the word spam. In terms of “spam” regarding
a term for unsolicited email there is of course a well known
raging debate. Let’s define “spam” for the purpose of this
article as email that is received by someone and they have
not actually signed up for that specific advertisement or
information email they received.
Here are the current numbers from Bright
Builders and Consumer Reports over the past year.
As a percentage of total email sent the below
numbers show how much spam was received in the United States
in each month.
-
64% May 2004
-
64% April 2004
-
63% March 2004
-
62% February 2004
-
60% January 2004
-
58% December 2003
-
56% November 2003
-
52% October 2003
-
54% September 2003
-
50% August 2003
-
50% July 2003
-
49% June 2003
These reports also studied the types of
emails which are coming through most frequently that are
considered “spam.”
22% are product type emails. Described
lovingly as “ Email attacks offering or advertising general
goods and services.” (Bright Builders) examples would be
devices, clothing, and makeup. 17% are financial types of
emails that contain references or offers related to money,
the stock market or other financial "opportunities."
Examples: Investments, Credit reports, Real estate, Loans.
16% adult emails containing or referring to products or
services intended for persons above the age of 18, often
offensive or inappropriate. Examples: Porn, Personal Ads,
Relationship advice. 10% are advertising health-related
products and Services. Examples: Pharmaceuticals, Medical
treatments, Herbal remedies. 9% scam emails recognized as
fraudulent, intentionally misguiding, or known to result in
fraudulent activity on the part of the sender. Examples:
Nigerian investment, Pyramid Schemes, Chain letters. 5%
Internet based email attacks specifically offering or
advertising Internet or computer related goods and services.
Examples: Web hosting, Web design, Spamware. 5% leisure
offers or advertising prizes, awards, or discounted leisure
activities. Examples: Vacation offers, Online casinos,
Games. 5% fraud
that appear to be from a well-known company,
but are not. Also known as "brand spoofing" or "phishing",
these messages are often used to trick users into revealing
personal information such as email address, financial
information and passwords. Examples: Account notification,
Credit card verification, Billing updates. 3% political
messages advertising a political candidate's campaign,
offers to donate money to a political party or political
cause, offers for products related to a political
figure/campaign, etc. Examples: Political party, Elections,
Donations. 2% Spiritual information pertaining to religious
or spiritual evangelization and/or services. Examples:
Psychics, Astrology, Organized religion, Outreach. 6% other
types of emails not pertaining to any other category.
How much email are we sending as a community
that fits into the above categories? Hopefully we can begin
to turn the tide of descent and show the value of email
based advertisements to a larger community.
David Fishman
dfishman@ileadmedia.com
