Stupidity and Spam

I just spent the better part of the weekend tweaking my server’s spam filters.  This is an ongoing battle for anyone who’s dealing with the internet.  Lately we have been flooded by a new wave of junk mail from these indescribable morons who must believe the whole Western world is as stupid and greedy as they are.

The ploys are almost endless.  You have won a European lottery you never entered.  Click here and fill out our survey and win a $500 gift certificate or a free iPod or some such nonsense.  Fill out their survey and surprise! Your email will be entered into the spam lists of 100,000 other spammers and the flow of spam will never end.

And then there are the phishing scams, dozens of them that try to scare you into thinking your account’s security has been breached and if you just log into your account and change your settings or verify your account, all will be well.  Naturally, if you are foolish enough to do that, the scammers now have access to your account and within minutes will clean out any funds you have.

Oh, and how could we forget these? The seemingly endless ways to make money. “I need you on my team, it’s urgent that we speak immediately!” Or my favorite: “I’m going to show you my secret for making millions of dollars. I don’t care that you don’t know me from Adam, you should trust me and follow my system for untold weatlh.”  “Sign up with us and we will grow your business for you! All you have to do is sit back and watch the checks come in the mail.”

Forget spam filters. I need a stupid filter!