Combat Spam with a Disposable E-mail Address

Returning again to a hi-tech hotbed for the latest tools and trends in cyberspace, we note Charles Bermant, a tech columnist with the Seattle Times has discovered a simple, but interesting solution to a common problem ...

The spam threat has imposed a chill factor on our online lives. We are afraid to share e-mail addresses on new sites because once it is passed on it can destroy an environment it has taken years to protect.

As a result, we just don't visit some potentially exciting places because we could catch something.

A solution has emerged in the form of Anonymizer's new Nyms service. Here, you create custom "disposable" e-mail addresses for each online destination. So if my address is cbermant@seattletimes.com, I would enter cbermant.amazon@nyms.net when I needed to buy some books. Any mail sent to that address would filter through the Nyms service and end up in my standard e-mail box.

One day (again, this is just an example), Amazon.com may sell or pass on its database. After that time I would start receiving spam or unwelcome marketing messages. But I would have recourse. The spam arrives addressed to my Amazon alias and would be immediately detectable.

Not only do I know who "sold me out" I can immediately deactivate the specific address -- exterminating any of the spam that may arrive through that source.

"This program allows you to take control," said Lance Cottrell, who wrote the software to solve his own spam problem. "We allow people to take proactive control of spam rather than having to clean it up on the back end."

This control includes the ability to set the lifespan for a certain address. You may be attending a conference and need to enter your e-mail in order to receive needed directions. But you are protected at the end of the show when the sponsors need to recoup some of their losses by selling their mailing lists.

It also raises the safety quotient for blogs or bulletin boards, allowing you to safely leave your name on a public post. If you strike up a trustworthy correspondence as a result of this connection you can clue them into your real address. Otherwise you just pull the plug when the spam starts coming.

The program requires a Windows download utility. It is operable through the Web for Mac users.

Nyms takes some extra effort and setup time, and you always have to think twice whenever leaving a new address. On the other hand, you might waste the same amount of time cleaning spam out of the inbox or just complaining. So it is just a choice about how you want to spend each day.

The price of entry is well below the pain threshold, a one-year subscription costs just under $20. To sign up, visit www.anonymizer.com.