Am I the only one whose e-mail is on somebody's SPAM list in the Orient somewhere?  I keep getting SPAM with some reference to ASSRA and moulds (or molds) in the title, but the characters in the body of the e-mail are in Chinese or some similar Asian-looking alphabet.  I'm also hearing from somebody in China who will make all sorts of plastic injection moldings for me(???)  Is anyone else getting similar e-mails whose address has been hijacked in this way, perhaps via this forum?

Froggie

I have yet to receive any spam seemingly related to any of my association with the ASSRA forums,but I get plenty from having to include a valid email whenever I purchase anything online, or make inquiries for products online.
That info gets sold today just like snail mail lists got sold years ago.
I ended up creating two emails; one for mostly business communications, and another that takes the spam hits from my online inquiries and purchases.

Good One

Lots of ideas on how to stop spam with various programs. I don't get any spam, knock on wood. What I find more irritating are junk solicitation phone calls that are nothing more than a recording. Some call twice a week. Despite reporting it to the "Do Not Call" list I still get them.

I have gotten unwanted commercial/industrial ads from off-shore mold industry companies that seem to be keyed off of a google search that is based on the use of "mold" in any website post. I just select the domaine name and "block" it rather than the sender.  Its probably just a brainless bot-search rather like all the damn catalogues you get when you sign up for AARP.

microsoft is always the prime target - first, because they own the vast lion's share of the pc market, and two, because their software is basically a hacker's wet dream.  

unix-like based systems (apple, linux) are not prime targets, and are much harder to crack.

i strongly suggest looking into linux, such as the free mint or ubuntu versions.  linux looks and feels like windows, no real re-learning required, and they come already loaded with superb apps.  i left windows 13 years ago and haven't looked back.  linux mint is the Best, at least for me.  you can dual boot linux with windows, too, and have both operating systems (in case there are ms apps you need).  just remember when you load windows to pull the plug on the internet.   

waaay back when i started using ubuntu, my thinking and computer rationale was exactly like uscra112's.

but LOTS has changed with linux in 15 years, and all for the better.  

up until 2 years ago i was still dual booting all six of my machines with the latest flavor of windows along with the current build of linux mint, in order to use legacy win apps and in order to view websites as my customers saw then (via windows).  but no longer.  i weaned off almost all of those ms apps save a few that i rarely access via WINE.  

windows is just a portal to the hackers of the world, always has and always will be.  their software (when it works) is SO unnecessarily verbose, to boot.  the average computer user (email, browsers, facebook, twitter, a full office suite, graphics creation/editing, video creation/editing) will be far better off with FREE linux (or spend lotsa dollars on an apple box).  

i started building computer hardware and software in the mid 70's, and having worked with bell labs and bellcore on unix systems and arpanet (before it became the www i'net we now know) many decades ago, and programmed communications provisioning software for the baby bells, any windows os and their software is just bush league compared to any version of unix (free linux or pay-to-play apple, etc).   

there are free versions of linux (ubuntu and mint) that will work fine as a stand-alone os, or dual booted with ANY microsoft os on your machine (laptop or desktop).  

i will say to all ms slaves - spend some time with linux, trial a downloaded version of mint or ubuntu off a disc, load it as a dual boot os (you get to pick which os to load when you start your machine), you'll see how much it looks and feels and operates like a windows machine, but you get the solid protection of the unix shell.  

oh yes, NO virus/hacker software needed nor provided with linux. 

did  i mention that linux mint and ubuntu are FREE?  sorry - you won't hafta spend a dime ... promise.

Maynard, FWIW, I don't belong to AARP and never will.  My info (assumed correct) is that AARP is the brainchild of an insurance salesman in Florida who was and probably still is the top dog making a damn fortune off the older people who bought into his pitch.  A racket.  GW