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Teaching a Lesson to Spam Filters
Question :
How can I stop my computer's spam filter from sending mail that I want to
the Junk folder?
Answer : Spam filters work by analyzing incoming
messages for certain characteristics common in unsolicited bulk e-mail, like
multiple addressees or certain words in the message's subject line, and then
diverting suspect messages into a special Junk or Spam folder. Some
spam-catching software can be a little overzealous at first, though, and put
mail from people you'd actually like to hear from into your Junk folder.
Whether you have a separate anti-spam program or e-mail software that can
filter junk mail, you should be able to adjust the program to allow messages
you actually want into your in-box. Most spam filters let you adjust their
overall settings in the program's preferences to be more or less vigilant
when screening your mail, although it may take some tinkering to get
accurate filtering.
In most programs, you can also tag messages to be junk or not junk. This
teaches the program to let mail from certain addresses through while showing
it the kinds of messages you consider to be spam. If you don't see a Junk
button on your mail program's toolbar to click when you have spam in your
in-box, try right-clicking on the message and looking for an option to tag
the messages as spam.
If you find messages from friends that have landed in your Junk folder,
select them, right-click and look for a menu option like "This is not spam"
to tell the program not to block messages from that sender.
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