How Do I Block Emails From Reaching My Yahoo Spam Folder.

Setup a SPAM magnet e-mail account. Junk e-mailers want to send you e-mail. They love to send you e-mail. They go to great lengths to force it down your throat. Fine. Give them a place to send it. Setup a free e-mail account at any of the many free e-mail access websites. Personally, I prefer www.hotmail.com for this "spam magnet" account for several reasons: 1) Because they are notorious for allowing spammers to operate. Use it to your advantage. 2) The account works in-hand with Microsoft's Passport scheme. Like most things from Microsoft, you'll probably end up having to use, or needing it at some point, anyway. 3) You can set hotmail to automatically dump all the unread (junk) mail every week. Just go into the account once every month or so to keep it active.

I go one step further. I set the option to always delete all mail unless the sender is in my hotmail address book. I never add anyone to my address book. The only one who can send me messages is the hotmail administrative staff.

This is the address to give out. Use it when every you have to enter a valid e-mail address for a vendor, but you know you never what to receive anything from them. If they sell your address to a million spammers -- you don't care! You'll never see it!

Setup an exception e-mail account. There's a catch. A lot of times, you need to give your email address online and you need to receive a response. For example, if you order a piece of software, or try a demo program, the vendor many times needs to e-mail you a registration key. Or, if you're shipping something, you may want to receive a notice. Or, you submit a technical support question on a form, and you need to get the reply. There are valid exceptions. Don't give out your private, personal e-mail account. Setup a free e-mail account at one of the many free e-mail access websites. Personally, I prefer www.yahoo.com for this "exception" account for several reasons. 1) Yahoo! has a great spam blocking system, so even if the address is abused by spammers, almost all spam messages automatically go into a separate "bulk e-mail" junk folder. 2) Yahoo! e-mail allows you to block mail from any individual sender simply by clicking on a "Block Address" link at the top of any message.

Use this e-mail address for everything else.

Never give out your private "real" e-mail address. This one is important. NEVER. Don't write it down on a piece of paper, don't enter it into a screen, don't sign a guestbook using it, don't even give it to your mother or your best friend. Instead, give out your "exception" e-mail address. Then once communication is started, send a message to their e-mail address from your private "real" email program and let them reply directly to it. Encourage them to remember and use your exception address unless they are replying directly to you in an e-mail. Why? If your friend, mother, or "dear aunt Piddy" sends you something online (like an electronic greeting card, or a fowarded "Joke" e-mail that is copied to a dozen people) you're going to get picked up, and put a spam list. It's better that it is sent to your "exception" account.

I hope this is helpful to you!

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