Spam—it’s annoying at best, and at worst, it’s dangerous. It puts your computer and your personal information at risk. Plus, the more spam you get, the more likely you are to waste time filtering it out. Maybe you’ve already had to abandon an email address that was getting overloaded with spam. There are plenty of methods to stop spam, but one of the most effective methods is keeping your email address from spammers in the first place.^[1][2]

Method1Practicing Good Email Habits

1. 

   
   

   1

   Limit how often you give out your email. Don’t give your email address to untrusted or unknown entities. From retail rewards programs to weekly newsletter services, everyone wants your email address. When you put your email address out there, remember that you don’t know exactly where it’s going. Don’t give your email address to just anyone!

2. 

   
   

   2

   Don’t forward chain emails. Be wary of forwards and passing them along to friends. If you’ve forwarded something to a friend and then they forward it on, now your email address is part of a chain that will be passed around to people you don’t know.

3. 

   
   

   3

   Consider setting up a dummy address. Set up an alternative email address to use when creating logins or signing up with something you can’t verify.

4. 

   
   

   4

   Never click a spam link or reply to a spam email. Doing so tells the spammer that your email address is good.

   • This includes “unsubscribe” links found in spam email. These links will not actually unsubscribe you, and they will not reduce the amount of spam you get but rather put you at risk. On the other hand, selecting unsubscribe links in emails from trusted sources—to which you have previously subscribed—is fine, as these links are what they say.
   • This also means don’t buy anything from a spammer. Someone must be buying from them, because spammers are sticking around and even multiplying. Make sure you’re not the one keeping them in business.

5. 
   

Method2Adjusting Your Mobile Email Settings

1. 

   
   

   1

   Stop images from loading automatically on your iPhone.

   • iPhone Email: Select Settings > Mail, Contact, Calendars and deselect “Load Remote Images”. (This is not the default setting.)
   • Gmail App: Open Gmail on a computer. Click the gear icon at the top right and select “Settings”. Under the “General” tab you’ll see an “Images” section—check the box labeled “Ask before displaying external images”. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and select “Save Changes”. (This is not the default setting.)
   • Outlook App: The option to turn off images is unavailable.

2. 
   

3. 

   
   

   2

   Stop images from loading automatically on your Android device.

   • Android Email: This will vary based on your device. Look for the settings option in your email app.
   • Gmail: In the Gmail app, select the Gmail icon > Settings > Images, then select “Ask before showing.” (This is not the default setting.)
   • Outlook: In the Outlook app, Select Menu > Email, then deselect “Always load remote images”. (This is not the default setting.)

4. 
   

5. 

   
   

   3

   Block unwanted text messages. If you’re receiving spam messages, you can quickly and easily block future messages from the sender.

   • For iPhone users, open the message and select “Details”. Select the circled “i” next to the number, then scroll to the bottom and select “Block this Caller”, then confirm your selection.
   • For Android users, press and hold the text message until you see an option to “Add to Spam”. Select this option and confirm your selection.

6. 
   

Method3Adjusting Your Desktop Email Settings

1. 

   
   

   1

   Consider switching to a different email client. The one that came with your operating system is likely highly targeted by spammers. Certain email clients, such as Gmail and Outlook, are more secure than others.

   • Gmail automatically filters most spam, but if something makes it past the filter you’ll want to select the “Report Spam” option.
   • Outlook also filters spam, but you can increase its effectiveness under Tools > Junk Email Protection. Here you can increase the level of protection and specify “Safe Domains” and “Blocked Senders”.

2. 
   

3. 

   
   

   2

   Change your settings so you don’t download pictures automatically. Spammers can send a different graphic to each person they email. If your computer loads that graphic from their server, they now know your address is working, and they learn your IP address and what browser and operating system you use. Your goal is to keep information out of spammers’ hands.

   • To do this in Gmail, click the gear icon at the top right and select “Settings”. Under the “General” tab you’ll see an “Images” section—check the box labeled “Ask before displaying external images”. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and select “Save Changes”. (This is not the default setting.)
   • To do this in Outlook on a Mac, select the “Outlook” menu at the top, then select Preferences > Reading. Under “Automatically download pictures from the internet”, select “Never”. (This is the default—it should already be set to “Never” if you haven’t previously changed it, but it’s always good to check!)
   • To do this in Outlook on a PC, select the “File” menu at the top, then select Options > Trust Center. Under the “Microsoft Outlook Trust Center” menu, select “Trust Center Settings”. Uncheck the box labeled “Don’t download pictures automatically in HTML e-mail messages or RSS items”. (Again, this is the default setting, but it’s always good to check!)

4. 
   

5. 

   
   

   3

   Turn off the preview pane in your email settings. Email clients that show you the message without making you click them are essentially "reading" your email for you. This automatically lets the spammers know your address is good if they’ve added an image or requested a read receipt.

   • To do this in Gmail, click the gear icon at the top right and select “Settings”. Under the “General” tab you’ll see a “Snippets” section—check the box labeled “No Snippets”. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and select “Save Changes”. (This is not the default setting.)
   • In Outlook, select the “View” menu at the top, then select Reading Pane > Hidden. (By default, the reading pane is enabled.)

6.