As internet has reached its peak popularity during past couple of years, so have companies followed suit and expanded their abilities to advertise. The biggest problem is that they don’t know when to stop advertising.

The best place to begin with this manual is to give you a list of some of things that you may do that will leave your inbox vulnerable to receiving spam.

• Filling out a registration for an online newsletter is a common way for companies to use your inbox to advertise.

• Registering your inbox for promos and contests.

• When installing new software it is common to register your email address for updates, but it is also leaving yourself open to spam.

• Signing yourself up for just about anything online is leaving yourself open to receiving spam.

• Reviewing books online generally requires that you provide your email address.

One Common factor in all of these things listed is that you have to volunteer your email address to a company before it can be used. Of course, there are ways for a company to get your email address without you having to give it to them directly.

Lewis Leake is the webmaster of eMailCash.com. There you will find articles, resources, books and product reviews on eMail Marketing Strategies and Tactics. You will also find a number of articles on SPAM and how to prevent it. Get Your FREE Mini-Report Spam and It's Consequences!

Each computer that spam travels through will add lines to header stating who they are, who mail came from, and where they are sending it. Headers can seem complicated, but in most cases you will be able to at least recognize other ISPs. If your mail is through Yahoo and you see “juno.com” in mix, then you know that you can report spam to Juno.

When reporting spam, you will need to cut and paste full header path into email to give experts opportunity to track down offender. To read an email header, you typically just right click on email and then choose properties, options, or header depending on which email program you are using.

Finally, forward spam to a number of authorities. The first would be spammer’s ISP. If you cannot tell who that may be, send spam to your ISP. Additionally, several websites are available to help you report spam, like spamcop.net.

Second, forward spam to Federal Trade Commission at uce@ftc.gov. While they will not take action on your behalf, they will add spam to a database compiled on known UCE (unsolicited commercial email).

If spam is a “419 Scam”, or Nigerian Advance Fee Fraud, fax a copy of email and its headers to United States Secret Service. You will know this spam when you read it – an exiled African leader of some sort needs your help and bank account information. These scams have defrauded many and need to be taken seriously.

Now you may delete spam.

Lewis Leake is the webmaster of eMailCash.com. There you will find articles, resources, books and product reviews on eMail Marketing Strategies and Tactics. You will also find a number of articles on SPAM and how to prevent it. Get Your FREE Mini-Report Spam and It's Consequences!