What is SPAM?

Anyone who has ever managed an email account will have come across the term spam and although many know they are unsolicited messages that can be annoying, few really know what spam is, why we receive these types of emails or how to avoid them.

Below we explain everything related to spam, whether you're a victim of it or want to know if your email or website is considered spam.

What does spam mean and what is it?

The word spam originated in World War II, when soldiers received canned food sent by their families, including a canned meat called spam, which after a while was considered annoying, repetitive and even unavoidable.

Based on this, in the 1970s the term became popular in computer language to describe mass unsolicited communication through email, although today we can find spam through different digital media.

The first spam campaign was identified in 1978 when the inboxes of ARPANET users (internet predecessor) received an unsolicited advertising campaign from a company. However, after receiving so much criticism, this marketing method was discarded.

In simple terms, spam is considered any type of mass communication that is sent without prior request. Although the most common spam occurs in emails, today it's possible to receive spam through SMS text messages, social networks, voice messages, among others. In general, spam is illegal.

Can I send spam from your servers?

No, we have one of the best security systems in hosting, so we guarantee the satisfaction of our clients by avoiding the entry and exit of spam from our servers. If you want to send bulk emails you must follow the methods currently available for this purpose.

Why is spam sent?

The main objective of spam is to reach a greater number of people with advertising content. Previously and even today it is used by some companies as a marketing technique. However, after receiving so many negative responses, it's a practice that has been disappearing.

This doesn't mean spam is no longer used, because in fact today it is widely used with malicious intentions. Through email chains, viruses are distributed, with the intent to steal information from the devices accessed or cause any other type of problems that affect victims.

Can my website be on a spam list?

Of course. On the web you can find a public list that identifies different IP addresses and websites that have sent spam, with the purpose of letting all servers, emails and domains know about those carrying out this activity.

Worse still, there are many people who have developed their projects and don't know they have been categorized as spam, others know but don't understand why they've been flagged this way since they've never produced spam.

When this happens, it's generally due to the server you're using for your projects. If you haven't acquired your own server, you're sharing an IP with others. If any of these users practice this activity, unfortunately your projects can be affected.

Fortunately, at Bacan this can't happen to you since we monitor all our servers. If any of them are sending spam, we correct it immediately, avoiding any type of blocking.

How can I know if my email is considered spam?

If you think for some reason your email has been categorized as spam, you can verify it in different ways. You'll need your IP address on hand to get answers:

On the web there are some platforms designated to identify IPs that send spam. You just need to check a couple of them to know if your email is spam or not. These are:

Another option to know if your email is spam is through a notification. In some cases providers of blacklist services take time to notify those on their list of their presence as a spam generator. In other cases it's the email service providers who handle the notification. Either way, we recommend checking your inbox to see if your provider or any security company has sent you a notification.

How can I prevent spam from being sent to me?

There are some measures you can take that will help reduce the chances of receiving spam. Start by avoiding publishing your email address on websites and public service sites. That is, use your personal information responsibly.

Another option is to have a main account for important matters and a secondary account for receiving newsletters and subscribing to websites you want.

How can I block spam in my email?

If you've been receiving junk mail and want to prevent these types of messages, it's very easy today to prevent these emails from coming back, whether you use Gmail or Outlook (the most popular email services). Simply select the message in question and look for the "mark as spam" option. This way you won't receive any more messages from that sender.

I'm getting a lot of spam emails. What can I do?

First stop sharing your email address on any platform, as some are designed to collect information for mass email sending. To stop receiving these emails you need to block the address sending you this unsolicited information by marking the emails as spam. New emails from that sender will automatically be sent to the spam folder.

Can I send bulk email?

Generally, providers like Gmail and Outlook are intended for sending personal emails, i.e., to a limited number of contacts. However if you want to send a mass email through these services you'll need to download some add-ons for Gmail or Outlook. However the number of emails you can send will still be limited.

The most recommended option is to purchase a professional hosting service. At Bacan we can help you.