Just about every company has some sort of anti-spam technology in place that filters out suspected spam. The technology is commonplace and inexpensive, and for the most part, effective. But beyond simply putting in some anti-spam software and forgetting about it, there’s really a lot more to spam prevention. Here are the top ten anti-spam tips for businesses:

1. Education. This has to be top on the list. Educating users as to what spam is, and what the consequences of it may be will go a long way towards eliminating the hazardous effects of spam if it does get through. Users need to be educated to not click on suspicious links, and to recognize “phish” emails when they appear.
2. Avoid overuse of posted email addresses. Sometimes it’s necessary to publish your email address, but be aware that doing so may make you vulnerable to robots that collect them for purposes of spam dissemination. A response form, as opposed to a published email address, may eliminate this problem; a second strategy is to use a separate email address when it’s necessary to post it in public.
   
3. Keep your anti-spam subscription current.
4. Implement a two-stage strategy, with anti-spam protection at the gateway as well as at the desktop. In this way, the bulk of the spam will be eliminated before it hits the desktop, helping to minimize traffic, and improve productivity. The second desktop stage of protection will serve to catch anything that gets through the gateway.
5. At the bottom of a spam email, you’ll usually see a “remove” link, which gives you the option of clicking on a link to be removed from a list. Avoid clicking on these links, as they seldom do what they promise; and in fact serve the purpose of confirming that your email address is valid. The end result will be more spam, not less.
6. Be cautious about opening email attachments. These may contain dangerous malware that may transform your computer into a spam-spewing robot.
7. Depending on your email client, you will probably have a “block sender” option. Outlook does offer this option. Although your strategy should involve catching most spam with your anti-spam software (at both the gateway and desktop), if users see spam coming through, they can block the sender using this tool.
8. Keep false positives to a minimum. Your anti-spam software should provide accurate analysis, but beyond that, try setting up individual rules in your email client. You can set up a series of “from” rules to indicate that emails from certain individuals or domains should always be sent through, regardless of content.
9. When subscribing to free Internet services that request your personal information, use a separate email address other than your usual one. Providing your primary email address to almost any online service or provider will result in unwanted email later on.
10. Be cautious in using auto-responders if you’re out of the office or temporarily unavailable. Your auto-responder responds to all email that comes in, including whatever spam makes it through your gauntlet of protection. The auto-response confirms to the spammer that your email address is valid.