Spiderman_RJ
Senior Member
The definition of spam is purposely vague because everybody has his or her own definition. As it currently stands, spam is in the eye of the beholder.
The general term spam can apply to messages over many outlets. Some common targets include email inboxes, search engines and discussion groups.
Unfortunately, most communication outlets are likely to be spammed to some degree. The more valuable the communication medium, the more likely it will attract spammers. Ironically, spammers threaten the very mediums they profit from.
or junk newsgroup postings. Some people define spam even more generally as any unsolicited e-mail. However, if a long-lost brother finds your e-mail address and sends you a message, this could hardly be called spam, even though it's unsolicited. Real spam is generally e-mail advertising for some product sent to a mailing list or newsgroup.
In addition to wasting people's time with unwanted e-mail, spam also eats up a lot of network bandwidth. Consequently, there are many organizations, as well as individuals, who have taken it upon themselves to fight spam with a variety of techniques. But because the Internet is public, there is really little that can be done to prevent spam, just as it is impossible to prevent junk mail. However, some online services have instituted policies to prevent spammers from spamming their subscribers.
There is some debate about the source of the term, but the generally accepted version is that it comes from the Monty Python song, "Spam spam spam spam, spam spam spam spam, lovely spam, wonderful spam…" Like the song, spam is an endless repetition of worthless text. Another school of thought maintains that it comes from the computer group lab at the University of Southern California who gave it the name because it has many of the same characteristics as the lunchmeat Spam:
Nobody wants it or ever asks for it.
No one ever eats it; it is the first item to be pushed to the side when eating the entree.
Sometimes it is actually tasty, like 1% of junk mail that is really useful to some people
The most commonly agreed upon definition of SPAM closely follows the laws that prohibit unwanted broadcast faxes, though the term SPAM itself only applies to email.
The characteristics of SPAM are simply that the email is:
Mass mailed
Commercial in nature
Not requested by the recipient
Sent without a prior business relationship
While there are several other characteristics useful in determining whether an email is SPAM, if any of the above three tests is true, it's generally considered SPAM.
A few common scenarios to help further define and apply these tests:
Scenario: An acquaintance sends a joke or urban legend to everyone in their address book.
While receiving such emails might be annoying, they are not considered SPAM because there is no commercial purpose to the emails.
Scenario: You visit a web site and request "more information" about a product or service, and you continue to receive email from the site on a regular basis.
Since you initiated contact and provided your email address, this is not SPAM, but is instead legitimate Direct Marketing. However, if you attempt to "unsubscribe" from receiving these communications, then future emails would qualify as SPAM.
Scenario: You have made a purchase from a company, and even after the transaction is complete, you continue to receive promotional emails from them.
Because a previous business relationship exists this is not considered SPAM, but is instead legitimate Direct Marketing. However, if you attempt to "unsubscribe" from receiving these communications, then future emails would qualify as SPAM.
Scenario: You receive commercial email solicitations that you have not requested, and where you have not previously conducted business with the owner of the web site.
Because there is no prior business relationship and the email is commercial in nature, this is definitely SPAM.
While there will always be some instances that defy easy classification, these guidelines and examples will accurately classify SPAM in the vast majority of cases.