Spam traps: What they are, what advantages and disadvantages they have and what types there are
Spam is one of the big problems on the internet . Spam emails may contain unsolicited information, fraud attempts such as phishing attacks, or contain malicious files or scripts that can infect your system. Using a spam catcher to detect and prevent this type of spam from ending up in your inbox is the best solution.
Next, we will see what a spam trap is , what types exist and what are the benefits and drawbacks of using it in your company.
What does a spam trap consist of?
Spam traps or spam traps are tools that are used in computer security with the aim of detecting senders who send mass or spam emails . These are email addresses that are not used to exchange information, but rather as a “trap” to detect spammers.
When a spam, harmful or fraudulent email reaches a spam traps account, an automatic registration is made with information about the sender and the type of deception or fraud of the message.
These types of email addresses are used by providers such as Gmail, Yahoo or Outlook to identify senders who use contact lists to send mass emails, without having the users’ prior permission.
Types of spam traps
We can divide the types of spam traps into two:
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Honeypots : These are email accounts that have been created specifically to detect spammers and malicious emails. These types of accounts are not assigned to users or used in registrations and other actions, so you should not receive any messages (this fact makes it easier to detect spammers).
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Recovered spam traps : These are unused email accounts that are recovered by the email provider. Before deleting them, send an email to the lists to which you are subscribed alerting them that they are out of use. In this way, senders who do not comply with unsubscribe requests can be identified and included in a spam list.
What advantages and disadvantages for your business
Spam traps are a good way to avoid or reduce spam, one of the biggest problems that exist on the Internet, with millions of unwanted or malicious emails traveling through it every day.
With these traps you can create lists of spammers and block their accounts , considerably reducing the receipt of this type of unauthorized messages. Furthermore, with spam trap accounts the inbox is kept clean of emails that do not add value, making the daily management of received messages easier.
It is important to know how spam traps work so as not to fall into them and see how a company email account is blocked due to inappropriate use of email marketing campaigns . The blocking can even be extended to the entire domain , with the negative consequences that this entails for the business.
We have seen what spam is and how a spam traps account works to detect senders who sent mass emails without user authorization. These types of traps used by email providers persecute those who break the rules, and are dedicated to spam or buying contact lists without the explicit consent of the users who form it.