Google Gmail - Spam Killer That Works

I have been using a Google Gmail for about 3 years, ever since it first was in beta form. My main purpose in using a Gmail account was to have a alternate address, in lieu of my two personal email accounts, which I could use to sign onto web sites that I did not trust. Over the years I noticed that my Gmail account received very little spam, mainly because I used the ‘report spam’ button if and when I received spam.

So when I read an article on the Google blog about their span filtering efforts, I took a look  to see what efforts Google was employing to kill spam before it got to my inbox. In seems that some 70% of emails sent to Gmail is spam, yet they report that less than 1% of the junk gets through. Not bad. They also state in their article:

When Gmail’s spam filters are working perfectly, no one talks to us anti-spam engineers. But as soon as something goes wrong, our users, our friends, and even our Google colleagues who use Gmail for their corporate mail are sure to tell us. That’s just the way we like it. Spam is not something people should grow numb to and accept as a fact of life. We *want* people to complain. That’s the only way things get better.

Due in large part to all the great feedback we get, things are better. We’re keeping more spam out of your inbox than ever before, so more and more, you can use Gmail for things you enjoy without even realizing that the spam filter is there most of the time. It’s not too different from driving a convertible down the freeway with the top down, with the wind blowing through your hair and no traffic jams to destroy the mood. Now, I’m not saying we’re perfect, but the really good news is that it seems like spammers are finally starting to get discouraged.

If you don’t have a free Gmail account, may I suggest that you sign up for the service. 

Full Google Blog entry is here.

[tags]google, gmail, service, free, spam, filtering, inbox, [/tags]