User Manual

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This type of advertising is legitimate, since you may be
interested in receiving commercial information about some
products. But many companies send unsolicited bulk
commercial messages. In such cases, email advertising crosses
the line and becomes spam.
The amount of unsolicited email has become a problem and it
shows no signs of slowing. Authors of unsolicited email often
attempt to disguise spam as legitimate messages.
12.3.2 Hoaxes
A hoax is misinformation that is spread across the Internet.
Hoaxes are usually sent via email or communication tools like
ICQ and Skype. The message itself is often a joke or Urban
Legend.
Computer Virus hoaxes try to generate fear, uncertainty and
doubt (FUD) in the recipients, bringing them to believe that
there is an “undetectable virus“ deleting files and retrieving
passwords, or performing some other harmful activity on their
system.
Some hoaxes work by asking recipients to forward messages
to their contacts, perpetuating the hoax. There are mobile
phone hoaxes, pleas for help, people offering to send you
money from abroad, etc. It is often impossible to determine
the intent of the creator.
If you see a message prompting you to forward it to everyone
you know, it may very well be a hoax. There are many
websites on the Internet that can verify if an email is
legitimate. Before forwarding, perform an Internet search on
any message you suspect is a hoax.
12.3.3 Phishing
The term phishing defines a criminal activity that uses social
engineering (manipulating users in order to obtain confidential
information). Its aim is to gain access to sensitive data such as
bank account numbers, PIN codes, etc.
Access is usually achieved by sending email that impersonates
a trustworthy person or business (e.g., financial institution,
insurance company). The email can look very genuine, and will
contain graphics and content which may have originally come
from the source it is impersonating. You will be asked to enter,
under various pretenses (data verification, financial
operations), some of your personal data – bank account
numbers or usernames and passwords. All such data, if
submitted, can easily be stolen and misused.
Banks, insurance companies, and other legitimate companies
will never request usernames and passwords in an unsolicited
email.
12.3.4 Recognizing spam scams
Generally, there are a few indicators that can help you identify
spam (unsolicited emails) in your mailbox. If a message fulfills
at least some of the following criteria, it is most likely a spam
message.
Sender address does not belong to someone on your
contact list
you are offered a large sum of money, but you have to
provide a small sum first
you are asked to enter, under various pretenses (data
verification, Financial operations), some of your personal
data – bank account numbers, usernames and passwords,
etc.
it is written in a foreign language
you are asked to buy a product you are not interested in. If
you decide to purchase anyway, please verify that the
message sender is a reliable vendor (consult the original
product manufacturer)
some of the words are misspelled in an attempt to trick
your spam filter. For example vaig ra instead of viag ra , etc.