Spam As a Way of Internet Life?

According to a survey done by Pew Internet and American Life Project, internet users are starting to accept spam as one of the aspects of internet usage, and that since 2003, there has been little change with how people go about eliminating the unwanted ads. According to an article by the Associated Press, phishing scams (stealing bank passwords and sensitive information) are all the rage, while porn spamming is on the decline.

We’re not any less annoyed by spam. We’re just more accepting of it. So says a study released Sunday by the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

Fifty-three percent of adult e-mail users in the United States now say they trust e-mail less because of spam, down from 62 percent a year ago and about the same as a June 2003 Pew survey.

Pew also found that 22 percent of e-mail users say they are spending less time on e-mail because of spam, down from 29 percent last year. In 2003, it was 25 percent.

“This shows some level of tolerance that people are manifesting,” said Deborah Fallows, a senior research fellow at Pew and the study’s author. “Maybe it’s their getting used to it. Maybe it’s like other annoying things in life — air pollution, traffic — they are just learning to live with it.”

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