You can also report a spammer to his or her ISP, which in turn may rescind the spammer’s account or assess “cleanup fees.”
Programs such as SpamCop and the Network Abuse Clearinghouse offer reporting/filtering programs that electronically forward spam complaints to ISPs and, in some cases, get a spammer’s address blacklisted, meaning that the user can be denied Internet access through that ISP.
Senders who advertise fraudulent products can also be reported to the Federal Trade Commission. Those who advertise unapproved medical products can be reported to the Food and Drug Administration at (800) 532-4440.
Selected anti-spam programs
| Program | URL | Clients | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| SpamBayes | http://spambayes.sourceforge.net/index.html | Microsoft Outlook 2000/XP | Free |
| spamassassin | http://www.spamassasin.org | Any POP clients | Free |
| SpamCop | http://www.spamcop.net | Reporting | Free |
| Network Abuse Clearinghouse | http://www.abuse.net | Reporting | Free |
| MailFrontier Matador | http://www.mailfrontier.com | Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express | $29.95 |
| Ella | http://www.openfieldsoftware.com/ | Microsoft Outlook 2000/02, Outlook Express 5/6 | $29.95 |
| InBoxer | http://www.inboxer.com | Microsoft Outlook 2000/02/XP | $29.95 |
| EmailProtect | http://www.contentwatch.com/email_protect/index.php | Any POP or IMAP e-mail client | $39.95 |
| (STEVEN) | http://www.softwaredevelopment.net.au/pge_steven.htm | Any POP client, Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express | Free and $29 registered versions |
| Vipul’s Razor | http://razor.sourceforge.net/ | Requires PERL, software agents | Free |
| SpamEater Pro | http://www.hms.com/spameater.asp | Any POP client | $24.95 |
Related Resources
Spam safety tips. http://www.spamfilterreview.com/spam-saftey-tips.html
Spam Tips and Help. http://spam.abuse.net/userhelp/
Mark R. Senate panel overwhelmingly passes anti-spam bill. dc.internet.com June 19, 2003. Available at: http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/2224681. Accessed Sept. 5, 2003
Sturdevant C. Can-Spam Act can’t. eWeek June 9, 2003. Available at: http://www.eweek.com/print_article/0,3668,a=43121,00.asp. Accessed Sept. 5, 2003
If you have any questions about these products or comments about Psyber Psychiatry, click here to contact Dr. Luo or send an e-mail to Current.Psychiatry@dowdenhealth.com.
Disclosure
Dr. Luo reports no financial relationship with any company whose products are mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed by Dr. Luo in this column are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Current Psychiatry.