What else can you do to control spam?

OWT offers a robust and powerful spam filter to help you control the amount of unsolicited Email you receive. This may not always be enough for a variety of reasons including but certainly not limited to:

• You have had your Email address for a very long time and so your address is on every spammer list in existence.
• Your Email address is very "guessable" and so spammers try your address only knowing the domain.
• Someone has used your address for mischief. This is harder to do these days but even today not all systems confirm and Email address before accepting it on subscription lists etc.

So what else can you do? Here are some quick suggestions that may be helpful in controlling your spam and also help you keep your message from being filtered by others:

1. OWT includes additional Email addresses with almost every account we offer. Request a special account that you may use just for special circumstances where you wish you didn't have to give out your Email address. You may want one address for home, one for business or for any specific purpose. Changing your Email address will almost always result in an immediate and drastic reduction in spam but it may not always last forever.
   
   Email us at admin@owt.com to request another Email account. See our Email Services page for more information.
2. OWT offers free personality Email addresses - your Email address can be on any of several other domains rather than @owt.com. More Information.
3. Request an Email address that is somewhat cryptic. This does not mean just adding numbers as that trick is widely known by all the spammers - rather try to think of something less obvious. If your name is John K. Doe your Email address is likely johndoe@owt.com or jdoe@owt.com which is guessable by spam systems. Consider instead using doejk@owt.com which is less guessable . It doesn't look as good but it will receive less spam.
4. Avoid signing up for joke lists and other free subscriptions that might share your Email address with others. Look for a privacy policy and read it before giving out your Email address.
5. Label each Email with a relevant subject. Blank or overly simplistic subjects may appear as spam to virtually all spam recognition systems. Encourage your friends to do the same!
6. Make sure your anti-virus software is updated frequently. At the very least weekly! Don't be one of those users that pollutes the Internet with spam just because you didn't take the time to have your virus rules updated.
7. Do not reply to spam - EVER!!! You just confirmed your address and moved it to the hot list and will get even more spam. Unless you trust the company don't even use the "remove me from this list" utilities as the same result is likely.
8. Use and encourage good Email etiquette. This will help spam systems differentiate your message from spam. The key rules to remember on the Internet:
   • Do not type in ALL CAPS - this is considered yelling and is rude but also is commonly used in spam messages.
   • Do not make fun of spam in your Email - it will certainly be recognized as spam then.
   • Avoid cute signature files that include animated graphics and other unnecessary things.
   • Always enter an Email subject , ideally at least 3 words long.
   • Avoid the use of HTML coded Email and most certainly avoid using a background in your Email messages (for so many reasons).
   • Never send messages containing only a graphic. Always type at least a sentence or two.
9. If you have your own domain avoid the use of a "catchall" address which will route any Email not explicitly addressed to a particular address on your domain to a real account. Spammers guess at Email addresses all the time and this will be a real problem.