Recognizing spam scams

Generally, there are a few indicators which 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, “vaigra” instead of “viagra”.