Spam is a daily diet for computers - but beware its sinister side

Published on Tuesday 26 June 2007 01:48

IT'S a fortunate person who doesn't have to deal with the problem of junk or virus e-mail today. Most of us encounter spam on a daily basis on our PCs in the office or at home. For some it's merely a nuisance, but for others it is far more sinister - in some cases it's criminals trying to steal your identity or hack into your system.

In the past month, Martin Aitken & Co blocked about 33,000 spam messages and around 1,000 virus or phishing e-mails. That's just one Glasgow firm with some 70 staff, so the worldwide scale of the problem is massive. Many of these e-mails are simply a nuisance, advertising viagra or weight-loss pills. Other e-mails contain malicious program code that may attempt to steal personal information or hijack the computer for remote control.

Computers compromised in this way can then be used to send more spam e-mails or for co-ordinated hacking attempts.

The recent cyber attack on Estonia is thought to have used millions of commandeered computers worldwide. Whatever the result, an infected PC is always bad news for the owner.

The good news is that it is relatively straightforward to make your e-mail experience safer. Some basic measures are simply about implementing good practice. For example, it often isn't realised that simply opening an infected e-mail or webpage can cause problems. Some practice suggestions include:

• Only open e-mails you expect to receive and from people you trust.

• Be careful about passing on your e-mail address and don't advertise it on chat rooms.

• Re-type a web address, rather than clicking on a link, if in any doubt.

• Don't reply to spam or click on opt-out links; this confirms your e-mail address is active.

• Read up on spam regularly to keep up with developments.

• Ensure automatic software updates are installed on a regular basis.

Technical solutions to the problem abound, but there are a number of popular options to consider.

Try using disposable e-mail addresses for one-off use. www.mailinator.com is one such service allowing you to send to [e-mail] and then pick up later. This may save revealing your real address until you're sure.

For larger companies, dedicated computers can be tasked with inspecting each e-mail before it reaches the inbox. Generally, this software will cost a few hundred pounds. Take a look at www.spamtitan.com for one example.

For smaller companies and individuals, having e-mail scanned by an external company or ISP is a good solution costing about 1 per month. Check out http://1and1.co.uk/xml/order/MailInstantMail

Otherwise, most anti-virus products include e-mail protection in their software. PC Pro magazine currently recommends F-Secure2007 to provide this protection, costing 40 per year for three PCs.

Whatever your approach, a combination of measures is the best defence. Mixing a software solution with a good measure of web sense will make e-life less risky all round.

• Graeme Frew is IT manager with Martin Aitken & Co accountants in Glasgow.