ByWhat Does Spam Stand For? Email Terminology You Should Learn
The primary meaning of spam is a message that is sent out to a large number of people at once. Everyone has to deal with spam emails to a certain extent. The danger of these messages varies. To protect yourself the best you can, here’s all the key information about spam.
Spam Email Statistics and Essentials
According to the , junk mail now takes up to 80% of total email traffic—which is in no way a small issue. Cybercriminals use various clever tactics to infiltrate the victim’s computer systems. The goal is to obtain sensitive data like login information, bank account details, social security numbers, and credit/debit card PIN codes.
If you wish to do something about this serious issue, do yourself a gigantic favor and learn how to stop spam emails quickly. Now, let’s look into the nasty phenomenon in more detail.
Origin of the Term Spam Email
The term spam could have a couple of different etymological explanations. The consensus is that the spam term owes its modern usage to a seemingly innocent comedy show—Monty Python’s Flying Circus.
In a particular scene of the TV show, two characters are dining out. The eatery would be fine if not for a single side dish every meal on the menu contains—spam. This spam is a special form of spiced ham (read that SPices hAM), and the punchline in the Monty Python scene is that the taste is disgusting.
A waiter in the restaurant points out how annoying it is that this particular type of meat is present on every single offering in quite a unique way. He cites the line that would set off the whole thing into motion—“Spam, spam, spam, spam…” And it goes on.
You might already be getting frustrated with the repetitiveness of the whole affair and how it connects to what spam stands for today.
Spam Email Acronym
We can now reveal the acronym of the term spam, as it has nothing to do with unsolicited commercial emails—but everything to do with a not so tasty type of food.
Get ready for the real shocker. The acronym spam actually stands for Specially Processed American Meat. That’s right. The spiced ham has a whole fascinating war history too.
Why Is Junk Email Called Spam?
You might still be wondering how it was that the Monty Python show and bogus emails got to be so connected. There are many debates on the first-ever usage of the term spam to refer to irritating messages.
Here are two popular theories:
- A Digital Equipment Corporation employer was the first spam sender
- The first deliberate marketing spam occurred on Usenet
Though both these cases contributed to the modern use of the word spam, we may conclude that whoever termed the bombarding of a large number of recipients with one message as spam was an ardent fan of the Monty Python show.
Whatever the Word Origin, Spam Is No Small Issue—and DoNotPay Can Help You Deal With It!
Reporting email abuse has become a valid method people employ to solve junk mail issues. With the help of DoNotPay, there are many ways in which you can deal with spam. For example, you can:
Fighting any bogus email takes only a few clicks with DoNotPay’s help. The excellent news is that you can also get compensated for the spam email torture.
The process is only too easy, and we’ll guide you through the whole thing. All you need to do is take these simple steps:
- Log into your DoNotPay account from any
- Select the Spam Collector option
- Type in your email address to connect it with DoNotPay
- Next time you receive an unsolicited email, forward it to spam@donotpay.com
With only four simple steps, you got rid of a spam email sender once and for all. Here are a few key points to help you see how DoNotPay helps in this situation:
- When you forward the spam message to us, you are quickly unsubscribed from the sender’s mailing list
- There may be a class action against the sender, in which case you’ll be notified
- If the email is illegal, you have high chances to be compensated
The fact that you got a perfect spam email revenge is only the cherry on top of the cake. If you’re frequently on your phone, check out how to block spam email on Android and iPhone, too.
Recognize the Dangers of Spam to Avoid Falling Victim to It
The first thing you may do to prevent being a victim of email frauds is learning more about their patterns and purposes. There are methods you can use to recognize whether an email you received is fraudulent.
Look closely at the email address, check the language errors, and the content of the message itself—the more urgent the message seems, the higher the chances that it’s not legitimate.
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Unsolicited Commercial Emails |
Their Aims and the Danger They Pose |
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Spam |
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Phishing |
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Malware—Another Term You Have to Know
Malware is a software designed by cybercriminals with a purpose to infiltrate the victim’s computer system. The term is a coinage of two words, malicious and software, hence malware. Pretty clever, isn’t it?
Spammers can hide malware behind links and attachments in phishing emails. If you accidentally click or open any of those, a virus is going to start downloading right away, and all your data can be compromised. Take extra caution with opening links and attachments in spam emails!
DoNotPay Fights Your Physical Junk Mail Too
As if it isn’t stressful enough that your email inbox is plagued by spam, junk mail can arrive at your physical mailbox, too. Luckily, DoNotPay is here for you.
Take advantage of DoNotMail—our feature that lets you sort out your snail mail.
When you receive a piece of physical junk mail, all you need to do is take a picture of it and send it to us using the same steps we previously outlined.
The many benefits of DoNotMail involve:
- Removal from the junk mail sender’s list
- Protection against data and identity theft
- Possibility to get compensation
- Positive environmental impact
- Cleaner mailbox
DoNotPay Protects Your Privacy and Finances
Sharing your credit card details online comes with certain risks, and it’s getting more difficult to tell good and bad websites apart. With DoNotPay’s virtual credit card generator, you will be able to protect your identity and bank account from cyber scammers.
Whenever you run into a suspicious email or website, generate a virtual credit card and proceed without worries. Our virtual cards also work like a charm if you want to avoid automatic payments after free trials.
DoNotPay Let’s You Do So Much
DoNotPay is the first AI Consumer Champion in the world—designed to help you deal with a lot of day-to-day administrative issues. After creating an account using any , you can check out DoNotPay’s fantastic, and above all, useful features.
To make sure your rights as a customer are duly exercised, we can:
- Appeal traffic tickets
- Request compensation for annoying robocalls
- Help you get a refund for unused plane tickets
- Fight stalking and harassment
- End your subscriptions and memberships
- Dispute speeding tickets
- Set up a DMV meeting in a couple of minutes
- Help deal with bills you can’t pay
- Block spammers once and for all
- Offer virtual credit cards
- Get in touch with customer services and wait in long phone queues instead of you
- Boost your chances of winning the case against any company in small claims court
- Deal with parking tickets
- Request refunds from companies