gott
earlier i mentioned that...
"perhaps i will have time to search out some articles on spam that allude to this premise (that deleting unopened mail is preferable to deleting opened mail). i did send email to the author of one such article, asking for her opinion on the subject"
tonight i received an answer from this individual, and it supports what i have said regarding spammers knowing if you have opened their mail. i will post a link to her article on spam (it's quite informative and for that reason i decided that she might be a good person to pose my question to. i got lucky, in that i only emailed one writer, AND i got a reply).
the piece is titled
The fight to digest spam
There are ways, not foolproof, to avoid unsolicited email
Bangkok Post February 21, 2001
Wanda Sloan
scoop.bangkokpost.co.th
next, my email to wanda, then her reply...
*********************************
"Subject: deleting spam a benefit?
Date: Sun, 24 Jun 2001 23:57:37 -0700
From: mark <mrmark@saber.net>
To: wandas@post.com
hi
i just read your excellent piece on spam here
scoop.bangkokpost.co.th
please tell me if, in your opinion, it makes a difference if i delete
spam before opening it? i have heard that spammers can tell (whether by
way of receipts or by some other means) when their sent emails have been
opened, and these addresses are more valuable to them.
i am very careful using netscape messenger to delete spam prior to
opening, for this reason.
am i wasting my time? is this a myth (that spammers know whether i have
opened their mail)?
hope to hear from you! thank you
:)
mark"
*******************************
"Subject: Re: deleting spam a benefit?
Date: Tue, 26 Jun 2001 11:15:14 +0700
From: Wanda Sloan <wandas@post.com>
To: mark <mrmark@saber.net>
At 11:57 PM 24-06-01 -0700, you wrote:
Hi Mark, thanks for the mail. It's nice to know someone is reading.
>please tell me if, in your opinion, it makes a difference if i delete
>spam before opening it? i have heard that spammers can tell (whether by
There is a way to track mail now, yes. That is one reason that spammers use HTML format. They cannot tell, however, if you download it, they only can tell if you actually open it.
I wouldn't be quite so paranoid, myself. Spammers want "good" names, of
course, but you probably cannot affect the flow of spam very much.
However, deleting mail before you even download it has lots of advantages
INCLUDING spam so go ahead if it is helpful to you.
Best regards
WS"
********************************
i have not researched (documented) this subject beyond what i have posted here. if others have more to add, i'd love to hear it. i know that the above info is just one example of many i have read that states that spammers know if their mail has been opened.
:)
mark |
