Subject: Fighting spam

Question/Thought: Unfortunately what many do not realize is that by clicking an unsubscribe button they may well end up being subjected to even more spam! There is no law saying an unsubscribe link must unsubscribe. Rick Gortatowsky

Answer/Response: Rick, I have a simple request: "prove it". You are repeating the "urban myth" that clicking on an unsubscribe link will get you even more SPAM. That is not true. It probably has never been true.

The only ones to benefit from a person not unsubscribing are the list sellers and the list users. If you disagree with that, then supply us with detailed numbers and statistics based on real life experience and hard facts instead of repeating the vague, unsupported statement "may well end up". You say that you have "found in my years many sites that do just that". Again, "prove it". Give us the URLs or names of some of those sites.

Let us be VERY clear. Based on my ACTUAL experience and the detailed records that I kept, CLICKING ON THE UNSUBSCRIBE BUTTON RESULTS IN LESS SPAM. It does not result in more. Last time I posted on this subject, my SPAM was averaging 38 per day. It is now down to 25. Of those 25, 6 are in English, 1 has an usubscribe link, the rest I cannot read (as the language is Spanish, Russian, etc.). When I initially started my unsubscribe campaign, I was receiving an average of 295 per day. So I have eliminated 91% of my SPAM by unsubscribing. I have discontinued using a spam filter as I no longer need one.

Also, regarding "no law", you are wrong. There is a law saying that an unsubscribe link must unsubscribe. It is known as CAN-SPAM. And if the unsubscribe does not work (or none is supplied), the SPAM can be reported to the FTC (see http://www.ftc.gov/, and click on "File a Complaint"). And they seem happy to accept complaints from outside the US since their online form has provision for specifying your country.

by Tom Aman