Canning Spam: You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want) [Paperback]

Jeremy Poteet (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0672326396 | ISBN-13: 978-0672326394 | Publication Date: May 23, 2004 | Edition: 1

We've all seen it — the e-mails that come to us from a sender we don't know and promise a frog that jumps across our screen, a low mortgage rate or a medical miracle pill. These e-mails are otherwise known as spam. Your inbox gets cluttered or worse, your computer is infected with a virus as you scratch your head, wondering how it ever happened. Now there is a way to stop the madness! Canning Spam: You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want) is your remedy to inbox clutter and infected computers. Learn how spammers get your e-mail address and how to stop them, how viruses are transmitted through attachments, how spammers can mask their true identity and how to ultimately block unwanted e-mails. Next time you log in to your e-mail account, be happy to hear those three little words: “You've Got Mail!”

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

People are talking about 'Canning Spam'

"Sinister spammers are determined to pack our email boxes with unsolicited advertising, steal our identities, and expose our systems to harmful computer code. In 'Canning Spam,' Jeremy Poteet reveals the inside information, tips, and tricks that every user needs for self-defense. Don't read or send another email message until you’ve read this book!"
--Joe Kraynak, author of dozens of best-selling books including The Complete Idiot's Guide to Computer Basics, Que's Internet Yellow Pages, and Best of the Internet

"'Canning Spam' is an invaluable resource for those who suffer from one of the most -- if not the most -- annoying and debilitating misuses of the Internet. With this book, readers will become educated on the many faces of spam, how it works, and most importantly, what to do to rid your PC of it."
--Marc Saltzman, syndicated consumer tech journalist and author

"Spam is the worst thing about using the Internet -- if you're like me, you almost dread looking in your inbox every morning, knowing that you'll be besieged by come-ons, scams, and offers to enlarge certain private body parts. 'Canning Spam' will help you take back your inbox. It offers real-world, hands-on advice that will not only clean out your inbox, but help keep you off spam lists. And its in-depth explanations of how spam is created and how you can stop it will help you figure out spam-fighting techniques on your own. Buy this book and get back your inbox."
--Preston Gralla, author of 30 books, including How the Internet Works, and columnist for Ziff-Davis

"'Canning Spam' is a detailed examination of the spam and virus problems facing all computer users today. Not only does one learn the stories behind the problems, the author also provides common-sense solutions that one can use to reduce the incidence of spam and other email-borne annoyances. Particularly interesting are the real-world "case studies" that the author uses to demonstrate how regular users are affected by these pesky attacks. All computer users should take the precautions recommended in this book!"
--Michael Miller, President, The Molehill Group; author of more than fifty best-selling books including Absolute Beginner's Guide to eBay

"Spam is a big problem. People are tired of weeding through tons of useless information, wasting their precious time, and being exposed to a continual barrage of electronic harassment. This book will prove valuable to you in describing the true definition of spam, its origin, and the many techniques and measures in order to prevent it."
--Christian Kenyeres, Consultant

"Do you want to understand spam, email viruses, and all the other mysterious malicious things that go bump in the Internet night? If so, Jeremy Poteet's 'Canning Spam' is the book for you. You’ll find more useful info than you ever knew existed, as well as every safe-email tip known to mankind. Once you read this book, you will not only have that wonderful sense of security that comes from knowing what you are doing, you'll be able to hold your own with any of the local neighborhood nerds (not to mention your 12-year-old nephew)."
--Harley Hahn, humorist, computer expert, philosopher, author of Harley Hahn's Internet Yellow Pages

"Unwanted email wastes users' time and employers' money by exploiting both human and technical weakness. 'Canning Spam' combines plain-English descriptions of technical attacks with real-world examples of how and why they work, even when users think they know enough to avoid becoming victims. Until we get to the point that books like this aren't needed, this is one worth recommending to many email users and to every email administrator."
--Peter Coffee, Technology Editor, eWEEK

About the Author

Jeremy Potee is the Chief Security Officer for appDefense, a consulting company specializing in application security. Jeremy has many years of experience administering Windows, Unix and Linux-based servers. He is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and was the winner in the 2002 eWeek OpenLabs OpenHack IV competition. Jeremy is an active member of the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), including serving as a project manager for the OWASP Guide and a monthly columnist on .NET security. He is also a member of multiple OASIS technical committees that establish security standards. He can be reached at [e-mail].

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Sams; 1 edition (May 23, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0672326396
• ISBN-13: 978-0672326394
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,278,353 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Easy to understand, July 1, 2004

By 

W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canning Spam: You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want) (Paperback)

A very easy to read book that goes through various aspects of spam, and how to minimise your exposure to it. Of course, you need to be familiar with email, because you're getting spam, aren't you? But other than that, the technical background needed to understand the authors' points is minimal.

They explain clearly and in simple terms why spam exists, and the common ways in which spammers can get your email address and the typical characteristics of the spam that they send.

Various simple antispam techniques are shown. These are mostly aimed at the end user. For example, they suggest that you do not post your email address widely on the net. Or, if you post it on your web page, you choose something like drawing it in an image, so that a spam bot cannot harvest it. Or having an obscure address, like [e-mail], instead of a simple [e-mail]. So that your address cannot be found by a dictionary attack.

The problem with the authors' suggestions is that they undermine a lot of the usefulness of email. For example, having a short and simple address helps others remember it and type it correctly. And being able to just disseminate addresses widely was and still remains a core utility of email.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars this is the book I was looking for, November 21, 2004

By 

Charles Oriez (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canning Spam: You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want) (Paperback)

Although aimed at the end user, the book is also a must read for anyone setting email policies for company mail servers. it explains the connections between spam and viruses, how to avoid infecting your computer, howe to avoid getting onto spam lists, and all the spammer tricks to evade detection and point the blame for their spam to innocent parties. I thought I knew just about everything there was to know about spam. When half way through the book I was going into my copy of Eudora and modifying my environment to follow the author's advice, I knew that I was reading a book written by someone who knew his stuff. If I wrote a book on spam fighting and avoidance, this is the one that I would have wanted to write.

5.0 out of 5 stars Berglund Center for Internet Studies Review by Jeffrey Barlow, May 9, 2011

By 

Berglund Center for Internet Studies - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canning Spam: You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want) (Paperback)

There are many books offering a useful introduction to spam. One of the best we have encountered recently is Jeremy Poteet's Canning Spam. You've Got Mail (That You Don't Want). Published by SAMS Publishing, a house with much experience in producing useful introductory works, Canning Spam should be very useful to almost all of our readers... If you were to begin reading in some of the intermediate chapters, you might well find this work intimidating. But if you allow the author to lead you gently into an otherwise confusing world, you will find Canning Spam worthwhile. It is both a sort of brief encyclopedia of e-mail based threats and a pragmatic approach to reducing them...

For a full review see Interface, Volume 4, Issue 4.