How do I stop selling myself v1agra?

[nosh]

Just when you think your inbox is invincible, you start getting junk from the one person you don't want to start blacklisting online... "yourself"!

I would just mark my own addresses as junk (in my offline client) but I do occasionally mail myself stuff from the phone.  And I'm an "approved sender" so the images and god knows what else start loading immediately. I don't think I'm running a zombified machine and I'm at a complete dead end on this one - how do I stop junk messages when they appear to originate from my own address?

[mwb1100]

Well, the CAN-SPAM Act requires that the spam provide an opt-out method, so it seems to me you should just send yourself an opt-out request.

[Josh]

If not, you can fine yourself 10000$ US for violation of said act. Just contact the FCC

[nosh]

Who'll pay for all that v1agra then??

[zridling]

Odd, because I've been getting flooded with spam the last week. Usually, it's just a steady stream of porn ads, but man, those Japanese can get freaky!!

[zridling]

Not that there's anything wrong with that....

[app103]

maybe you should switch to Gmail and use this: http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/new-in-labs-stop-sending-mail-you-later.html

Or better yet, just filter it by keywords contained in the subject or body that you never want to see in your inbox, but combine that filter for emails from yourself, not to be sent to spam, but to trash instead.

That way, you don't block yourself or report yourself as a spammer, but still don't have that crap in your inbox.

[nosh]

but man, those Japanese can get freaky!!

App, mail goggles? Very funny!

I wish I could narrow it down to a set of keywords but sadly the spammers seem to have more words in their vocabulary than I care to enter into the filters. Hmm... maybe I could use a keyword for positive identification and send everything else from "me" to trash. Don't know if the filters will permit that but it's worth considering. Also, I'll have to remember to include that keyword everytime or end up deleting my own messages.

Like in the email etiquette thread, Option b: "delete button" seems like the best choice.

[Lashiec]

It's probably all due to e-mail spoofing, the "From" address is easy to forge, and what address better than yours to pass the spam filtering. Spam filters that analyze the mail body in search for certain words will flag it as spam without problems, GMail's filter is a good example, which has blocked Viagra spam that apparently I send to myself (which is ridiculous, why would I have any need to remind myself to use something I don't need? :D)

[zridling]

I do use gmail, App, so thanks for the link.

[40hz]

Hmm... maybe I could use a keyword for positive identification and send everything else from "me" to trash.

In T-Bird just use a nonsense text string as your subject line, and set your filters to move all mail from you with that string anywhere in the subject line to a folder labeled something clever like : From Me.

After that you can just purge whatever messages from you are left over - or write a second filter to do it after the first has executed.

In Outlook you might be able to do it with a single filter rule since Outlook (if I remember correctly) has an "else" action clause.

[nosh]

why would I have any need to remind myself to use something I don't need?

Since when did trivial things like 'need' stop a good salesman? 

In T-Bird just use a nonsense text string as your subject line...

I'm thinking of using my name contained in the From field in the first filter, that way I don't have to worry about fcsking up by forgetting to type in a specific subject line, which is extremely likely considering I have the memory of a four year old. It just struck me the spammers haven't used my name which they probably don't have access to. If that does happen I'll just modify the name slightly by putting it in square brackets or something.

Thanks for the input guys.

[sazzen]

Maybe there is a treatment program for that? 

I've been doing the same thing. Viagra and enlargement products for body parts I don't have. I thought I'd been doing it in my sleep or it was my alter ego - or something even more pernicious.

I use Thunderbird. I direct all emails from myself to a specific folder. Then, UNLESS I've sent myself something - during waking hours, I empty it all at once.  At least I don't have to look at them all the time.