E-MAIL - SPAM - 31.03.2011

Less spam thanks to disposable addresses

Alias

Many Web-based services are only accessible after providing a valid e-mail address. Unfortunately, the addresses collected are often used for the wrong purposes or are sold to third parties. You’re familiar with the phenomenon: after buying something on the Web, you suddenly start receiving promotional mailings.

By using a disposable address, you can defend yourself against such practices. A disposable address is a temporary e-mail alias which is linked to your “real” address. Messages sent to an alias are forwarded to your regular mailbox. When you find that a lot of spam starts entering via your alias, you can simply deactivate it. This technique makes an excellent complement to a spam filter.

Plus addresses

Fortunately, aliases are easy to find. To begin with, Hotmail and Gmail let you create and use so-called “plus” addresses. For instance, when your real address is firstname.name@gmail.com, any address in the form of firstname.name+anything-you-like@gmail.com automatically becomes a valid alias (for instance, john.johnsons+musicshop@gmail.com or, in Hotmail, annjohnson +cyclingnews@hotmail.com). This system allows you to create as many aliases as you like and to use them as disposable addresses.

Hotmail and Gmail don’t have a function for deactivating burnt “plus” addresses, but that’s not a major problem: you can easily create a filter diverting plus addresses to the Spam or Deleted folders.

Note. Unfortunately, addresses containing a “plus” sign often cause error messages when entered in a Web form. As a result, signing up with a Web service may prove impossible. Another disadvantage is that it’s relatively simple to distil your real address from a plus address. Needless to say that spammers are aware of this.

New aliases at Hotmail

Hotmail also offers a function for creating e-mail aliases, in Options; More Options; Manage Account; Account Details. These can serve as disposable addresses, and they are automatically linked to your Hotmail address. You can choose the part in front of the @ completely freely - this offers many more possibilities than the “plus” addresses. The Hotmail aliases you create are active immediately and remain valid until you explicitly delete them. However, you can create only five new aliases a year. This is insufficient if you wish to use a separate alias for each new online registration, although you could create one alias per “category”: an alias for all your online purchases, another alias for all your newsletters, etc. Moreover, your Hotmail aliases can also be used as fully-fledged e-mail addresses, so you can send messages featuring the alias as the sender’s address.

Other services

There are also specialised suppliers of disposable addresses. Mailinator (http://www.mailinator.com) is ideal if you need a disposable address for only a very short period, for instance just for trying out a new website. To use and manage disposable addresses, try Spamgourmet (http://www.spamgourmet.com - free) or Spamex (http://www.spamex.com - $10 or £6.15/year).