How to Safely Unsubscribe From Spam Emails & 30 Best Anti-spam Tools

Spam emails are more than just a nuisance; they can be dangerous. Clicking on a link in one of these emails can expose your inbox to malware or phishing scams. Unsubscribing can be risky, as it might reveal personal information or confirm your email address to spammers. To protect yourself, knowing how to unsubscribe safely from spam emails is essential. This article will guide you through the safest methods to unsubscribe from spam emails in Gmail, helping you with gmail cleanup, organize, and secure your inbox.

Inbox Zapper’s Gmail cleanup tool is a powerful solution that automates safely unsubscribing from unwanted emails, helping you achieve your email goals quickly and securely.

What Is Email Spam?

Email spam, or junk mail, is unwanted or unsolicited messages that wind up in your inbox. In other words, spam emails come from mailing lists you never signed up for. For example, if you suddenly receive emails from a cruise company offering buy one, get one deal, but you’ve never signed up for emails from said company or even been on a cruise, you’ve received a spam message. 

Spam messages may come from companies simply trying to advertise their products or services, but other spam messages are known as phishing attacks. Phishing emails attempt to steal your information by appearing to come from a credible source, like:

• Your bank
• Car insurance company 

Why Is It Called Spam?

The word spam was used to describe pesky messages from the TV show Monty Python's Flying Circus. A sketch in one of the episodes featured Vikings who passionately chant about Spam, the brand name for canned, processed meat. Their chants became so loud and repetitive that they muted any other conversations. Eventually, this sketch became synonymous with annoying messages, and spam mail was born.

5 Common Types of Spam

1. Commercial Advertisements

Whether an email message is spam or a legitimate advertisement, in the United States, it’s subject to the CAN-SPAM Act guidelines. When businesses capture your email address, they often subscribe you to their newsletter by default as a low-cost way to sell their products.

Managing Marketing Emails

Whenever you fill out an online form, look for a checkbox to opt into or out of marketing email. While these emails can be pesky, most are harmless, and by law, they must have a visible opt-out or unsubscribe option. If you unsubscribe and continue to receive spam, update your email settings to filter messages from the sender’s address out of your inbox. 

2. Antivirus Warnings

Ironically, antivirus warnings are a common spam tactic. These emails warn you about a computer virus infection and offer a solution, often an antivirus scan, to fix the alleged cyber threat. But taking the bait and clicking the link can grant the hacker access to your system or may download a malicious file. Do not click a random email link if you suspect your computer is infected. Instead, pursue legitimate cybersecurity software solutions to protect your endpoints.

3. Email Spoofing 

Why are phishing email scams often effective? Because the spam emails masterfully mimic legitimate corporate messages to get you to act. In a spoofing attack, a spammer picks a company brand victims will trust, such as a bank or an employer, then uses the company’s exact formatting and logos. 

Before you reply or click anything, check the From line to ensure the sender’s email address (not just the alias) is legitimate. Contact the company to verify whether the email is real when in doubt. 

4. Sweepstakes Winners

Spammers often send emails claiming you have won a sweepstakes or a prize. They urge you to respond quickly to collect your prize and may ask you to click a link or submit some personal information. If you don’t recognize the competition or the email address seems dubious, don’t click links or reply with personal details.

5. Money Scams

Unfortunately, spammers prey on people’s goodwill. A typical money scam begins with emails asking for help in dire circumstances. The spammer fabricates a story about needing funds for a family emergency or a tragic life event. Some scams, like the Nigerian prince scheme, promise to give you money if you just send your bank account information or pay a small processing fee. Always be cautious about providing personal information or sending money. 

How Do Spammers Get Your Email Address?

Do you sometimes stare at the spam in your inbox and wonder how the spammers got your address? There is no one answer to your question. Unfortunately, spammers can be pretty resourceful in their efforts to send spam to as many people as possible. Here are just a few ways spammers get email addresses:

Legal and Illegal Address Lists

Spammers use a variety of legal and illegal sources to get email address lists. For example, if you sign up for an online service, you may agree that your email address can be sold to third parties, for marketing lists may even sell email addresses without permission.

Email Harvesting Programs

If you post your email address on public internet forums or online platforms, no matter how small or obscure, spammers can find it. They use automated tools to scour the internet for email addresses, usually searching for the @ character.

Spam Emails

Spammers sometimes send spam to get new addresses for their lists. They randomly send bulk mailings to users at major email providers, and if they receive replies to these emails, they know the address exists and continue to use it on their mailing lists.

Data Leaks

Hackers sometimes break into company databases and steal customer email addresses and other data. The hacked customer information can then be sold to other cybercriminals, including spammers.

How To Identify Spam Emails

Spam emails can be annoying but can also threaten your privacy, finances, and personal security. To avoid falling victim to spam email scams, you must learn how to identify spam emails. Use the following checklist to spot spam emails: 

Know Your Senders

Is the sender known to you, and does the email address match the name?

Sometimes, you can spot spam without even opening the email. You know what messages you get from your email provider, what newsletters you subscribe to, and what online services I use. Of course, I know my friends and family. So, an email from a sender I’ve never heard of should always be treated cautiously.

Identifying Spoofed Email Addresses

I should also remember that skilled spammers can forge the sender’s name so that people think they’re receiving an email from Amazon, LinkedIn, or another legitimate company. One way to tell if an address has been faked is to position my mouse pointer over the sender's name and see if the email address that appears matches that name. 

I look for slight misspellings that indicate that an address is not legitimate, like paypol.com instead of paypal.com. I also checked the email domain name, and an email from Amazon, for example, will not come from @gmail.com or another private address but from an official Amazon.com email address.

Subject Lines Can Be a Clue

The email's subject line can be another clue that I’ve been sent suspicious content. Most of us know better than to open a message from sexy singles or supposed royalty in far-off countries, but I should also be wary of subject lines claiming there are technical problems with my PC or mobile device. 

Cryptic or poorly translated sentences or phrases are another clue. To fool spam filters, spammers sometimes use words with some letters replaced by symbols or numbers, like “d!et” instead of “diet.”

If It Seems Too Good to Be True

If you receive an email that contains mysterious health claims, like a wonder drug that your doctor has been keeping secret from you, beware! This is a standard email hoax, as are offers to quickly get you out of debt or lucrative job offers you have yet to apply for. Often, such emails can expose you to viruses or other malware in links or attachments. So even if I am curious, I should never click on any links or attachments in such messages, and never, ever simply hit “Reply” and provide any requested information unless I am confident the sender is legitimate.

Don’t Fall for the Pressure Tactics

Spammers often send fake emails to gain information like account numbers and passwords. For example, I might receive a message from someone claiming to be my bank stating I’ll be locked out of my account unless I click a link and enter my login information.

Recognizing and Addressing Email Scams

Email scams may also try to make you feel uneasy with tricks like claiming that your device is infected by a virus or sending fake warnings from billing departments. So if I get an email that makes me nervous, I trust those feelings! I stay calm and do some research into the content and the sender.

Protecting Yourself from Phishing Attempts

For example, if the email appears to have been sent by a real service provider, I contact them directly using the contact information they provide on their website. I NEVER hit reply or use any links or contact information from the suspicious message—they may be fake or expose me to malware. 

Spam Email Samples

Spammers use many different tactics to grab our attention and entice us to click on their emails. Since sensational and urgent language is one tactic they employ, I take a few moments to reflect before I take the bait. I also always keep in mind that legitimate companies will never ask for sensitive information like passwords or credit card numbers by email.

Here are a few examples of spammy subject lines that should arouse your suspicions:

• Congratulations! Claim your free iPhone today!
• Urgent account alert! Verify password today!
• Earn $1000 per day from home!
• Flash sale: Join for free today to lose 10 pounds in 5 days!
• Secret investment opportunity: What stock experts don’t want you to know!

Is It Safe To Open Spam Emails?

Never fear. If I fail to identify a spam email and open it by accident, in most cases, no harm will come to me or my device. Even if the message contains unsafe attachments or links, simply opening the email is not enough to trigger a download or take me to a fake website. 

The real danger comes from:

• Downloading an attachment containing malware
• Clicking on phishing links
• Replying to the message with sensitive data (like my credit card information)

So, if I open an email and then notice it’s spam, I’m careful not to click anything within the email and immediately move it to my Spam folder.

Inbox Zapper, Your Ultimate Gmail Cleanup Solution

Inbox Zapper is the Gmail cleanup tool that works. With one click, Inbox Zapper allows you to:

• Mass unsubscribe from emails and newsletters
• Mass delete emails

Inbox Zapper scans your inbox for email lists and unwanted emails. Your email data never leaves your device, preserving complete privacy.

Simplify your Gmail inbox with Inbox Zapper, the powerful Gmail cleanup tool that keeps your data private.

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How Can Individuals Stop Receiving Spam?

Activate Your Spam Filters

Most email services have built-in spam filters that automatically direct suspicious emails to a spam folder. You can adjust these filters to fine-tune their sensitivity or set up custom filters based on specific criteria to better control what reaches your inbox.

Maintain Email Privacy

It’s essential to keep your email address as private as possible. Avoid sharing it on:

• Public forums
• Social media
• Websites where spammers can easily harvest it

The less exposure your email has, the harder it is for spammers to find it.

Create Separate Email Accounts

For added security, consider using multiple email addresses. Have one for personal use and another for online transactions or subscriptions. This can limit spam on your primary account and keep essential communications clear of potential spam.

Examine Emails Carefully

Be vigilant about the emails you receive. Spammers often mimic legitimate sources. Check the sender's details by hovering over their name to see if the email address matches the supposed sender, like PayPal. Also, watch for poor spelling or grammar, which is common in spam emails.

Avoid Responding to Spam

Never reply to spam emails. Responding signals to the sender that your email address is active can lead to more spam. Instead, mark these emails as spam, which aids your email provider in recognizing and filtering similar future emails.

Exercise Caution with 'Unsubscribe' Links

While unsubscribing seems straightforward to reduce unwanted emails, it can be risky with spam. Spammers might use unsubscribe links to confirm active emails or direct you to malicious sites. It’s safer to mark suspicious emails as spam rather than interacting with them.

Implement Antivirus Protection

Installing robust antivirus software can safeguard your devices if you accidentally interact with a spam message. This software can block malware and potentially harmful websites, providing additional security for your online activities.

Declutter Your Gmail in Seconds

Inbox Zapper is the Gmail cleanup tool that works. With one click, Inbox Zapper allows you to:

• Mass unsubscribe from emails and newsletters
• Mass delete emails
• Scan your inbox for unwanted emails and lists while keeping all your data on your device for complete privacy.

Built with privacy as a top priority, we don’t resell your data; we just help clean your inbox. Join 15,687 people who have used Inbox Zapper to clean 28,384,924 emails. Currently, Inbox Zapper supports Gmail only, but we’re expanding to other email services soon. 

Experience the easiest way to clean your Gmail inbox. Try Inbox Zapper's Gmail cleanup tool for free today!

Does Unsubscribing From Spam Emails Work?

It indeed should, says Joe Jones, the director of research and insights for the International Association of Privacy Professionals. “Organizations are required under applicable privacy laws to make unsubscribing just as easy as subscribing.”

According to the Federal Trade Commission’s CAN-SPAM Act, businesses that use email for commercial messages must tell recipients how to opt out of receiving future marketing emails. The notice should be crafted in a way that’s easy for an ordinary person to recognize, read and understand.

How to Unsubscribe From Legit Emails

According to a paper published in Web Search and Data Mining, of the emails in your inbox that are not spam, 90% are automated messages. This means taking back control of your inbox can take time and effort. But here’s the good news: If you’re attempting to opt out of emails from reputable companies sending newsletters, surveys, or promotional materials, clicking “unsubscribe” and following the prompts should work.

Jones notes that unsubscribe buttons are often hidden at the bottom of emails in tiny or grayed-out type. This is an example of what experts call dark patterns, aka deceptive design, which makes it harder to consent to what you want. 

If you want to find a hidden unsubscribe link:

1. Hold down “Ctrl” (or “Command” on a Mac)
2. Press “F”
3. Type “Unsubscribe”
   

After you go through the unsubscribing process, marketers have ten business days to honor your request, per the CAN-SPAM Act. If you continue to receive emails from them, you can mark them as spam.

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Is It Safe to Unsubscribe From a Spam Email?

In short, it depends. Unsubscribing from spam emails can be safe if the sender is legitimate. For instance, if you receive an email from a company you recognize, and it’s a marketing email, it’s usually safe to unsubscribe. Still, if you get a marketing email from a company you don’t recognize, it’s best to:

• Err on the side of caution
• Avoid clicking any links in the email

Spam emails can be dangerous, and you can’t always trust the “unsubscribe” link to do what it says it will do.

Why Is Unsubscribing From Spam Emails Risky?

In many countries, entities are legally required to let recipients unsubscribe. In the United States, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act gives people the right to force senders to stop emailing them. The United Kingdom has a similar law. One major catch is that phishers and spammers don’t care about laws. 

Even though regulatory agencies set severe penalties for violations, typically fines or legal action, they are powerless in the face of the dark web. They have no recourse if they can’t figure out spammers’ identities. So, although senders technically are required to let people opt out of future messages, they won’t always follow those rules.

The Risks of Unsubscribing From Spam and Scam Emails

While federal regulations require companies to make unsubscribing from emails simple, there are circumstances in which it’s not so safe to press “unsubscribe.” And they have to do with spam. 

According to some surveys, the average inbox can be as much as 45% to 50% spam. Other surveys put it as high as 85%. Unfortunately, you cannot trust links in these spam emails—not every “unsubscribe” button does what it says it will do. 

Here’s what you need to know about spam emails and the links you should never trust:

You Might Click a Malicious Link

Cybersecurity experts say think twice before hitting the “unsubscribe” button in a pesky spam email. While emails from reputable companies are safe, others cannot be trusted. “Just like any business, spammers want a high return on investment,” says Charles Henderson, executive vice president of cybersecurity services for Coalfire, a cybersecurity and compliance company. Attaching a fake link to unsubscribe is one of the best ways for scammers to ensure their email hits its mark. By clicking it, you could fall into an online scam.

You Could End Up on a Spam Website

Cybercriminals often use phony “unsubscribe” links to bring users to malicious web pages. According to Henderson, even links with seemingly familiar URLs are not always safe. “Spam emails continue to get better and better over time,” he says. “Spammers can create custom URLs, or use a popular URL with a slight typo to trick the user into believing it's a trusted site.” 

Henderson suggests hovering over the link with your mouse before clicking. If the URL looks strange or is misspelled, mark the email as spam or junk through your email’s interface instead. 

You May Confirm That Your Email Address Is Active

You could be giving away valuable intel. Clicking links in junk emails may seem like a simple way to clean your inbox, but doing so could make the spam problem worse. By clicking on a fake link in a spam email, you might be confirming to the spammer that your email address is:

• Correct
• Active
• Checked regularly

When hackers get your email address, they can sell your contact information to other cybercriminals or gain access to more of your data, among other nefarious things.

You Could Receive Even More Spam

Once cybercriminals know your email address is active, they will likely continue contacting you and plaguing your inbox with spammy emails. In this sense, clicking the unsubscribe link can sometimes result in an even more frustratingly full inbox.

Hackers Can Download Malware

On top of compromising your email account, hitting the unsubscribe button in a spam email could also compromise your computer. Hackers might take the opportunity to download a virus to your PC or Mac instead of removing your email from their mailing list. If you accidentally click on a malicious link from a spammer, Jones recommends running health checks on your device and across your accounts in case of a data breach or similar incident. 

Hackers Can Spy on and Impersonate You

A virus or other malware on your computer can spell serious trouble for your digital privacy. “If malware is deployed, the spammers can often see everything you’re doing on your computer, including capturing keystrokes for your passwords and banking information,” according to Henderson. He says that once your computer is hacked, cybercriminals can use that information to impersonate you online. Spyware can lead to financial loss from identity theft or credit card fraud as well.

How To Safely Unsubscribe From Spam Emails

Unsubscribing from a legitimate email list is easy. If you know, the email is legit, such as your airline points summary, a bank statement, or sale notices from a favorite retailer, and you want to keep it for my records, move the email to a dedicated folder. If you don't want to receive the emails anymore, look for an Unsubscribe button at the bottom of the message or, in some programs, follow the subject line. Click on it.

Confirming Email Deletion and Managing Preferences

The link may route to a webpage where you will be asked to fill in a reason for leaving. Choose an option that confirms this is a permanent deletion. Some sites will direct you to a Manage Preferences page, which gives you options to choose the types of email you wish to receive in the future. Click on Remove me from all emails or something to that effect. 

In some email programs, you hover over an email in your inbox to prompt an Unsubscribe option. Others require you to open the email before I can take action.

How to Mark Spam Emails to Safely Clean Your Inbox

I can flag an email as spam on many email programs, such as:

• Apple Mail
• Google’s Gmail
• Microsoft Outlook
• Yahoo! Mail

On mobile:

• Press on it in my inbox
• Select Block sender, Mark, or the Move-to-folder icon (usually in the middle of the bottom row of icons)
• Choose Junk or Report spam

On a computer:

• Right-click a message
• Select Block sender, Junk, Label as spam or Report | Report junk

This method will delete flagged emails and send future spam from the same sender directly to your junk mail folder. 

How To Auto-Delete Spam in Gmail

Gmail allows you to create filters to complete automated email tasks. Learn how to set auto-delete spam in Gmail by following these simple steps, either in your web browser or on your mobile:

1. Open Gmail and log in.
2. Click the gear icon in the top right corner.
3. Choose See all settings from the drop-down menu.
4. Go into the Filters and Blocked Addresses tab.
5. Click Create a new filter.
6. Fill out the details and click Create filter.
7. Check the Delete it option and apply a filter to x matching conversations to delete already existing emails.
8. To complete, click Create Filter again. 

How To Auto-Delete Spam in Gmail: Mobile Version

Unfortunately, the Gmail mobile app does not allow me to create filters. Instead, I must use the Gmail web version or a third-party solution.  

Inbox Zapper: Your One-Click Solution for Email Cleanup

Inbox Zapper is the Gmail cleanup tool that works. With one click, Inbox Zapper allows you to:

• Mass unsubscribe from emails and newsletters
• Mass delete emails
• Scan your inbox for unwanted emails and lists while keeping all your data on your device for complete privacy.

Built with privacy as a top priority, we don’t resell your data; we just help clean your inbox. Join 15,687 people who have used Inbox Zapper to clean 28,384,924 emails. Currently, Inbox Zapper supports Gmail only, but we’re expanding to other email services soon. 

Experience the easiest way to clean your Gmail inbox. Try Inbox Zapper's Gmail cleanup tool for free today!

How To Unsubscribe From an Email Without Opening It

The best way to avoid exposing yourself to malware hiding in spam emails is not to open them. Instead, you can unsubscribe from unwanted senders without opening their messages.

Use a Third Party App To Unsubscribe From Spam Emails

The fail-safe route for unsubscribing from an email without opening it is by using a third-party provider like Leave Me Alone. Our specialized service lets you unsubscribe from unwanted emails and newsletters easily, even without opening these messages. 

To get started, follow the next steps to connect your email provider. Remember that you can connect multiple email addresses, so add all your accounts with emails you want to unsubscribe from.  

Add a Filter to Your Inbox

Set up a filtering rule in your email client to automatically filter emails. This can be set up to delete or move messages from those unwanted mailers into a separate folder. Here's how it works for Gmail:

1. Log into your Gmail account.
2. Click on the Settings icon and select ‘See all settings’
3. Choose ‘Filters & Blocked Addresses’
4. Select ‘Create a new filter.’ Fill out the form as appropriate and select an action to be applied to all messages that match your filter criteria.
5. Finish off by hitting ‘Create filter,’ that should be good to go.

Block This Sender from Contacting You in the Future

For those stubborn senders where unsubscribe simply isn’t working and they continue to spam your inbox without giving you options to unsubscribe, we’d recommend blocking them directly through your mail provider. Blocking senders is something that we’ve explored a lot over the years and we have created super detailed, step-by-step guides for how to block senders in:

• Gmail
• Yahoo
• iCloud 
• Outlook

Report the Messages as Spam/Phishing

If you’ve chosen to block the sender, we’d also recommend reporting their messages as spam to remove all risk of their messages slipping through in the future. This is a simple feature available in all mail providers, but here’s an example of how to do it in Gmail:

1. Select a message from the sender in question.
2. Click on the ‘Report spam’ icon (an octagon with an exclamation mark).
3. To report a phishing email, you would open the email, click the three vertical dots to open additional options, and choose ‘Report phishing.’
4. Confirm your action by clicking ‘Report phishing message’ in the pop-up window.  

What Is an Email Spam Filter Tool and How Does It Work?

Spam filters are just like regular, real-life filters, but instead of your coffee, they filter messages. They act as barriers between you and malicious actors. In technical terms, a spam filter is an application or software that analyzes incoming emails to detect unsolicited, harmful, ‘spammy’, or malware-infected messages. It then quarantines, rejects, or places emails in a junk folder. By doing so, it protects users from: 

• Having their personal or client information stolen
• Their devices are being used as spam bots
• Receiving unwanted emails and being unable to see important messages
• Cyberattacks are executed using emails.

How Does a Spam Filter Work?

Spam filters all have the same basic objective: to keep unwanted emails out of users’ inboxes. Here are several different types of spam filters, and they each use different filtering methods to hone in on spam: 

Content Filters

Analyze the text inside an email and use that information to decide whether or not to mark it as spam. The content of spam emails is often predictable, mainly because they tend to have the same primary objectives:

• Offer deals
• Promote explicit material
• Tap into human emotions, feelings, and desires, such as greed or fear

Content filters may search for words connected to money, such as:

• Discount
• Limited time
• Offer

Multiple uses of the target word typically trigger the filter. Content filters may also examine an email for inappropriate sexual language that could indicate explicit content. In some campaigns, an attacker may use sexually explicit emails to lure users into opening the email and then clicking on malicious links.

Blacklist Filters

These work by blocking emails from senders put on a list of spammers. Blacklist filters are updated regularly because spammers can change their email addresses relatively easily. If a spammer switches from one email domain to another, the email may still be able to penetrate the filter until it is updated and the sender’s emails once again get labeled as spam. 

A company can also use its blacklist spam filtering to protect its interests. For example, they can use them to target headhunters seeking to attract their employees to other companies. They could also use a blacklist filter to block emails that could waste employees’ time with sales offers and promotions that could distract them from getting their work done.

Header Filters

These examine the header of an email to see if it may be coming from an illegitimate source. This could include Internet Protocol (IP) addresses that spammers tend to use. It may also include information indicating the email is just one copy of many emails sent simultaneously to pre-organized groups of recipients. 

Language Filters

Target people from other countries, resulting in emails in a different language than the recipient's. In most cases, a user will only want to receive emails in languages in which they are fluent. If a business connection or customer from another country reaches out, the language filter could categorize that legitimate email as spam, so users may have to be instructed to check their spam folders when expecting these kinds of messages. 

Rule-Based Filters

Apply specific rules to all emails coming into your system. If the email’s content or origin matches one of the rules, it can be automatically sent to a spam folder. For example, you can set the filter to look for specific words or phrases in the body of an email. The message gets sent to the spam folder if these words are present. 

Advanced Filtering Techniques for Email Management

You can also set the filter to look for particular words or phrases in the header. This can be useful for emails associated with memberships that, while still useful, occasionally result in unwanted messages. Rule-based spam filtering is also useful for targeting specific senders. You can set it up to look for information in the domain the email is coming from or the name of the person sending it.

Bayesian Filter

It can learn your preferences by examining the emails that you send to spam. It observes the content of the emails you mark as spam and then sets up rules accordingly. These rules are then applied to future emails trying to get into your inbox. For example, a Bayesian filter can recognize this pattern if you constantly mark all emails from a specific sender as spam. It will then automatically look for emails from that sender and move them to your spam folder. 

Why Do Spam Filters Exist?

Even though most spam is relatively harmless, email providers use spam filtering to ensure their users' experiences are as annoyance-free as possible. Spam emails can fill up your inbox to the point where the amount of available storage approaches its limit, and inbox management becomes a pain. 

In this case, users may choose between upgrading their storage or getting another free email account. When a user migrates from one provider to another, the initial provider stands to lose money, so keeping them around by trying to eliminate spam will improve their bottom line. 

Spam can also contain malicious content that can infect users' computers with viruses or other malware. If an email provider, including a private company, cannot prevent these kinds of emails from getting through, the service may gain a reputation as a liability more than an asset. 

Benefits of Spam Filtering for Users and Companies

Filtering out spam improves both the user experience and the provider's reputation. For companies, a spam filter can protect valuable assets, including workstations, servers, and other elements of their network. Filtering out malicious emails can stop malware from penetrating the system and then moving east to west, infecting other users' computers. 

How Can Spam Filters Help You?

Spam filters can help prevent unwanted emails from entering your inbox. While this may sound straightforward, it can be challenging for filters to be constantly updated according to the most recent spam techniques and senders. Spammers may change the address from which emails come or the wording inside the header or body to bypass out-of-date spam filters. 

This can be effective if the spam filter needs to be regularly updated with the correct information. Therefore, ensuring your spam filter has adequate spam intelligence is essential. It can block hundreds or thousands of spam emails monthly if it does. 

Spam Filters as a Security Measure

Spam filters are also helpful because they provide an extra layer of security for your network. Email is a popular attack vector for hackers and malicious actors seeking to infect computers with malware. An attacker may send an email with an attachment that looks like an innocent image. Hidden within the file's code could be a virus-only executable when the recipient clicks on the file’s link. 

Protecting Employees from Malicious Emails

In other situations, the body of the email may contain a link. When the recipient clicks on that word or phrase, they are brought to a malicious website. With the right kind of spam filter, you can keep dangerous emails out of your employees' inboxes. With an adaptable spam filter, administrators can adjust the settings to target particularly harmful emails. They can also filter out emails that distract employees or waste their time. 

Managing Email Server Space with Spam Filtering

Because spam folders can be set to automatically delete the emails inside after a certain amount of time, an administrator can conserve space on an email server by targeting space-devouring spam. As spam is periodically deleted, the server is alleviated of wasteful email content.

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30 Best Free Email Anti-Spam Filter Tools 2024

1. Inbox Zapper: Your Go-To for Cleaning Gmail Spams

Inbox Zapper is the Gmail cleanup tool that works. With one click, Inbox Zapper allows you to:

• Mass unsubscribe from emails and newsletters
• Mass delete emails
• Scans your inbox for email lists and unwanted emails

None of your email data ever leaves your device, preserving complete privacy. Inbox Zapper was designed with privacy in mind from day one. Other tools resell your data; we just help you clean your inbox. 

Join 15,687 people who have used Inbox Zapper to clean 28,384,924 emails. For now, Inbox Zero only supports Gmail, but we will soon expand to other email services as well. 

Try Inbox Zapper's Gmail cleanup tool for free today to clean up your Gmail inbox with one click.

2. Mailvelope Lets You Encrypt Emails

Mailvelope is a browser extension with an option to encrypt and decrypt emails using the OpenPGP encryption feature. The Mailvelope integrates with all major mailing platforms like:

• Gmail
• Yahoo Mail
• Outlook Mail, etc.

This makes sending and receiving encrypted emails easy without switching between the platforms.

3. SpamAssassin: An Open-Source Filter

SpamAssassin is an open-source server-side filter offering a powerful customization tool. This tool is similar to Mailvelope, but unlike Mailvelope, SpamAssassin tackles the problem of spam emails using another process, spam filtering. 

4. Mailwasher: Personal Spam Control

Mailwasher is a software application designed especially for Windows users to fight against spam emails. Unlike the SpamAssassin, which works on the server-side model, the Mailwasher acts as a personal spam filter for a desktop. It offers you complete control over what emails you want to receive in your inbox.

5. SpamSieve: The Smart Filter for Mac

SpamSieve is a spam filter designed especially for macOS users. The SpamSieve follows the Bayesian filtering method to discover and stop spam emails from getting into the inbox section. It is designed while maintaining the easy-to-use policy; therefore, it can be easily integrated by a variety of email platforms like:

• Apple Mail
• Outlook
• Gmail, etc.

6. Boxbe: Free Email Management

Boxbe is a free-to-use email service provider that effortlessly manages your inbox by filtration for spam and unwanted emails. This tool creates a white list of the senders you want to receive and checks all the other emails to prove their identity and credibility for approval. 

7. SpamTitan for Individuals

SpamTitan is an email security solution provider that caters for its services in providing online security to businesses. For individual users, SpamTitan offers a spam filtration facility known as SpamTItan for individuals.

8. Zoho Mail: Secure Email for Business

Zoho Mail is a safe, ad-free, and business-oriented email security service offered by the company to secure the path to your email only for authorized emails. This tool is designed to meet the demands of all businesses irrespective of their size or stature.

9. N-Able Mail Assure

N-able Mail Assure is a cloud-based email spam service that offers a unique value proposition for many MSPs and IT Pros working in SMBs. The product has flexible pricing options and offers over 99.9%:

• Spam filtering accuracy
• Business continuity
• Email archiving

N-able Mail Assure stands apart from its competitors because it is built on in-house technology. Unlike some other email security providers, which resell technology, N-able has full control over its tech stack and quickly responds to new email-borne threats.

A Cloud-Based Email Filtering Solution

Since Mail Assure is also a cloud-based email filtering service, it’s easy for individuals and businesses to configure and deploy, regardless of the systems they use. It also uses SSL/TLS traffic encryption and seamless integration with Microsoft Office 365 and Outlook via an add-in and single sign-on. 

10. SpamBully

SpamBully is a relatively affordable email spam service at just $29.95 for a yearly subscription. It’s straightforward to install and intuitive to use, making it an accessible option for nearly any user. It offers the following:

• Detailed email information
• Phishing detection
• Spam blocking
• Message quarantine
• Blocklist data

While SpamBully offers a wide array of beneficial perks, one of its key features is its ability to learn what each user considers spam and adapt its settings based on your needs. The program will monitor your behavior over the first few weeks of use to determine how to filter spam in the future. 

11. SolarWinds MSP Mail Assure

SolarWinds MSP Mail Assure is an intelligent mail protection and filtering engine used to block the following:

• Spam
• Viruses
• Malware from violating your email

The program receives information from more than 1.8 million domains to provide the user with a better understanding of current threats. By using the software, the user can see problematic messages quarantined and blacklisted from senders suspected of contacting them.

SolarWinds Mail Assure is a cloud-based solution that makes setup and deployment easy. To start monitoring, you just need to add a new domain. Once installed, it benefits from SSL / TLS Traffic Encryption.

12. SpamTitan for Office 365

SpamTitan is a web-based antispam solution intended for Microsoft Office 365 accounts. The tool is designed to detect phishing attacks and zero-day attacks and recognize the latest threats. To identify new attacks, SpamTitan uses a mixture of machine learning and Bayesian analysis. Zero-day threat protection is great for minimizing exposure to emerging threats.

IP address whitelist and blacklist controls whether mail reaches your inbox or is blocked from future communication. For more extensive security, you can apply different degrees of:

• Spam Trust Levels to users
• Usergroups
• Domains

By segmenting your email environment in this way, you can manage potential entry points more effectively. 

13. Spameo

Antispam Chrome Extension helps you remove and filter all spam emails from your Gmail mailbox. It is an easy way to block senders and filter emails in Gmail. The users can filter and block emails and senders.

The cloud-based extension costs $37.00 per user and offers documents to help users familiarize themselves with its use. Gmail users receive too many emails.

14. ZEROSPAM

Zero spam is a cloud-based antispam solution that protects against:

• Spam
• Data hijacking
• Email phishing

A Comprehensive Email Security Solution

Zero spam will block you if someone sends you an email with a bad link or malicious attachment. For added protection, the program uses TLS encryption to keep your interactions safe from spies. If the client server crashes, the tool will use the automatic mail queue to help you return to normal operations as soon as possible. 

The Benefits of Zero Spam's Low False-Positive Rate

One of the main reasons for using Zero Spam is its low false-positive rate. It balances dismissing harmful messages without blocking communications from legitimate users. From a business perspective, this is an anti-spam platform that doesn’t hamper day-to-day operations. 

15. Comodo Dome Antispam

Comodo Dome Antispam is a spam prevention tool designed for business users. It scans and filters emails to keep inboxes safe from cyber attackers. When downloading files from the inbox, Comodo Dome Antispam uses its Valkyrie file verdict platform to analyze files as they are downloaded.

You can open and interact with a file without risk of infection, even from the latest malware attacks.

The Role of Email Filtering in Email Security

Email filtering controls the type of messages you see while opening your email account. Emails with viruses are blocked, so you are not logged out to ensure you have full transparency about the emails sent to your inbox. Through the management console, you can view archived and quarantined emails. 

16. MX Guarddog

MX Guarddog is a spam blocker that uses TLS encryption to protect your email inbox. Phishing attacks, malware, DDOS attacks, and viruses are just a few of the threats that MX Guarddog defends against. Once communication is blocked, you can view a quarantine report showing the blocked message information. 

Mail Filtering and Delivery With MX Guarddog

Legitimate mail is forwarded directly to your email server. For convenience, MX Guarddog automatically synchronizes email addresses from Windows AD, LDAP, and cPanel systems. In the event your server goes down, your mail will be stored and delivered automatically the next time you are online.

17. SPAMfighter

This is another filter available that will help avoid spam in your inbox. It stands out for being a complete and very easy-to-use filter that can be added to Outlook and Outlook Express mail. Therefore, SPAMfighter is characterized by eliminating unwanted messages and malware.

The client can download it entirely for free and only configure it on their server. It stands out for being very easy to use and offering many options that will help you achieve the most optimal results.

18. ORF Fusion

ORF Fusion is spam filter software explicitly designed for business use cases. The tool removes false positives and ensures that legitimate email reaches your inbox. One of the unique selling points of ORF Fusion is that it has 23 layered tests to check mail status. These tests are a mixture of blacklist and whitelist tests that stop malicious emails without affecting genuine emails. 

Managing Whitelists and Spam Filters

You can create a whitelist to ensure your trusted senders don’t get through the spam filter. The user also has control over what happens to those emails that are caught by the spam filter. For example, you can bounce them to reject the transmission, keep the mail, or redirect it to a different mailbox.

19. Spambrella

Spambrella protects thousands of end-users and handles tens of millions of messages per day. Spambrella has a highly diversified customer base on a global scale. Spambrella targets large and midsize organizations in all major vertical sectors, including:

• Financial services
• Retail
• Manufacturing
• Aerospace and defense
• Healthcare
• Education
• Government

Well-known non-profit organizations, retail businesses, banks, and aerospace and defense contractors also use Spambrella.

20. Topsec

Topsec Email Security removes spam, viruses, and malware and quarantines unwanted or illegal content according to customer requirements. Topsec Email Security works at the internet level. It works online and effectively ensures in real-time that all incoming emails are scanned for spam and other threats before they are released onto your network. Topsec Email Security quarantines email according to your company’s email policy.

21. Bitdefender

Bitdefender is currently one of the most important and popular programs for maintaining the security of your technological device, whether it is a computer or smartphone. This is how this software provides excellent quality antimalware and antispam that will help you protect the information stored in your email. In addition, it will guarantee you excellent security in each of your receiving messages.

A Multi-Layered Anti-Spam Solution

For this, Bitdefender offers multilayer security against any type of cyber-attack or antispam and also offers real-time protection. Therefore, Bitdefender has become one of the best options for controlling and eliminating spam from your Gmail or Outlook account.

22. BullGuard 

BullGuard is considered today one of the best antiviruses with an antispam function included in its system, which makes it one of the best alternatives when you want to maintain protection within your email inbox. One of the big problems that spam messages cause is that they quickly fill up your inbox with junk emails and take up space in your storage memory. 

Due to the problems generated by these unwanted messages, BullGuard is in charge of offering the necessary tools to control them. To do this, it checks each message received to see if it is a phishing or spam attempt and thus eliminates it. One of its main advantages is that it offers constant updates that are carried out automatically, which allows you to enjoy updated options to block any type of spam.

23. MailChannels

MailChannels offers solutions that protect businesses from malicious email threats. MailChannels Cloud is a secure SMTP relay service that scans outgoing email traffic to block:

• Spamming
• Avoid IP blacklists
• Detect compromised accounts
  

MailChannels is an email delivery service built for hosts. Its outbound spam filter makes it easy to deliver secure and reliable emails to your customers.

24. Avast

Avast is another of the most recognized and popular programs around the world. This is because it offers very good tools that will help you achieve the best results in terms of digital security. It not only offers you antivirus tools but also has very interesting antispam features, thus allowing you to have better control over your inbox.

Deleting spam has never been easier than with Avast Internet Security. To use this function and permanently eliminate spam from your email, you will have to download this option from its own platform. 

Installing Anti-Spam in Avast

To download this option in Avast, go to the “Settings” section, select the “Components” option, and then look for the AntiSPAM option to install it on your computer. This will help you have better control over your messages and thus avoid wasting time on those that do not interest you. 

25. Xeams

Xeams is a robust and secure mail server for:

• Windows
• Linux
• Solaris
• MacOSX
• Other versions of UNIX

It also supports SMTP, POP3, and IMAP. Xeams includes a powerful spam filtering engine that removes up to 99% of junk email right out of the box. This software offers a flexible approach to email and many other features, making it a very user-friendly server. It is a mass email manager. 

26. K9 Anti Spam

K9 is another software that will help you avoid annoying unwanted messages in your email inbox. These types of emails are usually very insistent and tedious, occupying a large part of the storage space offered by your server.

This is how K9 offers excellent spam filtering applications to help you eliminate their presence.

It is currently considered one of the most powerful and efficient programs on the market. In addition to blocking all those spam emails, if it detects a message that could be dangerous, it will send it directly to the spam folder so that you can decide what to do with it.

K9 works with the POP3 program and is compatible with the servers of:

• Outlook
• Yahoo
• Gmail
• AOL, among others

This is entirely free software to help you have better control of your inbox. 

27. GFI.com

This is another antispam currently available on the market and with which you can start to control everything you receive in your email. This software is designed to offer maximum antispam security by blocking any unwanted message sent to your server. It is available for almost all existing email servers on the market today.

Not only does it stand out for offering protection against spam, but it also offers security against malware, making it possible to avoid any attack on the email infrastructure. For all this,  GFI MailEssentials uses different advanced elements to help you achieve the best results.

28. Spamihilator

Spamihilator is another of the alternatives available today in the digital market and with which you will be able to control all the scams that affect your email address on a daily basis. This program is a filter that acts as an intermediary between what is the client and the server where it performs an examination of each of the messages that are downloaded.

How Mailwasher Works

In this case, it evaluates the state of each one of them and will only let pass those that act under certain rules and that does not pose any type of danger to the client. All this procedure runs in the background where only the user must add their email address data, such as the user and the type of server they use.

One of the main advantages of Spamihilator is that it is compatible with almost all email clients, such as:

• Outlook
• Yahoo
• Gmail and many others

29. CleanMail

CleanMail is an antivirus and spam filter that works with Thunderbird and other email clients. The programs can protect you not only from spam but also from malware and phishing attacks. It uses the SpamAssassin classifier combined with the Bayes database to determine spam from other emails.

Other notable features of CleanMail are the:

• Antivirus filter
• Attachment filter
• DNS blacklist
• Shared fingerprint filter
• Lag filter

30. POPFile

POPFile is an automatic email classification program that filters spam to filter spam that reaches your email address. POPFile uses categories for classification, but also allows users to create their own categories, such as work and personal category, for better email management.

The software uses the Bayes algorithm and requires users to manually train the tool by classifying spam and non-spam messages before it can automatically classify spam. You can download the latest version of POPFile from the official website, which was last updated in September 2015.

Is It Better To Block or Unsubscribe From Unwanted Emails?

Generally, it’s better to block junk mail to minimize the chances of any misclick resulting in a malware infection or privacy loss. The sender won’t receive a notification that they’ve been blocked, so it doesn’t tip them off to an active account. While deleting them is a good idea, preventing unwanted emails is better.

How To Report Spam on Gmail

When you report something as spam, the message will be moved into your spam folder, and a copy of the message will be sent to Google, so they can better filter out similar emails in the future, but you may still receive emails from that sender. 

The only way to guarantee you don't see any of their future messages is to block them. So if my Nigerian prince isn't taking no for an answer, it's time to hit that block button. Here's how to stop spam emails in their tracks.

How To Report Spam on Gmail From a Desktop

Open a spam email. Click the Report Spam icon (an octagon with an exclamation point) on the top right of the email.

How To Report Spam on the Gmail App

Open a spam email. Tap the three horizontal dots in the top-right corner. 

How To Block Emails on Gmail From a Desktop

Everyone has that one distant relative who sends you random, mildly offensive emails on the daily. Looking at you, Great Uncle Jack. If you want to stop receiving their messages altogether, here's how to block their emails on Gmail so they'll automatically be filtered into my spam folder:

• Open a message from someone you want to block.
• Click the three vertical dots next to the reply button in the top-right corner of the message.
• Click Block [sender's name] from the dropdown menu.
• A pop-up box will show up. Click Block.
  

You've officially blocked the sender, and all future messages from them will be sent directly to your spam folder. However, your current messages from the sender will not be moved unless you manually move them to your spam folder or execute a mass delete campaign.

How to Block Emails on the Gmail App

If inspiration strikes to go on a blocking spree, but you don't want to get up and walk five feet to your computer, here's how to block emails on the Gmail app (the process is the same for iPhone and Android users). The steps are essentially the same for the desktop. It just looks a bit different on the app:

• Open a message from someone you want to block.
• Tap the three horizontal dots next to the reply button in the top-right corner of the message.
• Tap Block [sender].
  

That's it! All future emails from that sender will go straight to your spam folder.

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Inbox Zapper is the Gmail cleanup tool that works. With one click, Inbox Zapper allows you to:

• Mass unsubscribe from emails and newsletters
• Mass delete emails. 
• Scans your inbox for unwanted emails and lists. 

None of your email data ever leaves your device, preserving complete privacy. Inbox Zapper was designed with privacy in mind from day one. Other tools resell your data. We just help you clean your inbox. Join 15,687 people who have used Inbox Zapper to clean 28,384,924 emails. For now, Inbox Zero only supports Gmail, but we will also expand to other email services. Inbox Zapper is the easiest way to clean your Gmail inbox. 

Try Inbox Zapper's Gmail cleanup tool for free today to clean up your Gmail inbox with one-click.

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