Apply these best practices to protect yourself from unwanted email.

• Proactively protect yourself against malicious spam and phishing attempts by protecting your personal computer with an anti-virus and security software program. Anti-virus and security software will help prevent you from accidentally visiting malicious web sites or having your personal information obtained without your consent.

• Don't be fooled by various phishing schemes designed to trick you into revealing personal information or taking unauthorized actions. Some phishing messages contain urgent requests, such as revealing personal information about yourself or others (bank account numbers, payroll direct deposit information, etc.) or spending money for questionable reasons. They frequently appear to come from high ranking people within your department, or reputable outside institutions. A frequent trick is a request to buy gift cards, usually with your own money and with a promise of reimbursement, and send the numbers to the scammer. Don't trust such phishing requests and delete such emails immediately.

• It is generally not good practice follow instructions to "remove yourself from the list" in spam messages. These removal instructions are often a gimmick used to verify that email address is valid. If you click on it, the spammers will add you to their list or sell your address to someone else. Replying in any way to a spam message lets spammers know they have found a valid email address. The only exception to this rule is that if you can positively identify a message as having been sent by a legitimate email marking company, then these unsubscribe links are generally safe. Laws require that such companies include working unsubscribe links, and legitimate marketing companies must stay within the law to maintain the good reputations that allow them to operate openly. But identifying messages sent by legitimate such companies is often difficult, and you shouldn't click on any unsubscribe link unless you are completely sure it is safe.

• Be careful when sharing your personal information online. Don't provide any personal information such as an address, phone number or email, if you are on a non-secure Web site. A secure site will start with "https" or display a locked padlock in your browser's status bar.

• Use filters and rules to screen unwanted mail. Filters and rules are tools within email programs that identify incoming messages as spam. Spam messages are then routed to a specified folder--such as Junk Mail, Trash, or Deleted Items. The process for creating filters and rules differs slightly in each program but the basic concept is the same. Contact the UT Service Desk if you have questions about creating filters and rules.

• Learn how to view complete headers in your email messages. A complete header displays information about the sender and the route the message takes before arriving in your inbox. If you report spam to a service provider, sending a complete header will help them determine the origin of the spam. This will make filters and rules more effective and also enables the ITS Service Desk staff to better assist you.

• Remember to always abide by the university's Acceptable Use Policy. Specifically, you must not:

  • Threaten violence or vandalism against the site or user that sent you spam.

  • Hack into the site.

  • Mail-bomb, ping-storm, SYN-flood or otherwise attack the site or user.