The War on Internet Spam Heats Up

If you spend any time at all on the Internet, you probably get spam - unsolicited e-mail containing advertising and other unwanted dreck. According to a recent Gartner Group survey, 91% of people online are spammed at least once a week. Usually it's easier just to accept it, like bad weather or mosquitoes. But some people have chosen to make fighting spam their crusade, and this week they're launching a campaign against it, both on your hard drive, and in the courts.

On Monday a company called Bright Light Technologies launched Bright Mail, a free service that automatically keeps your inbox all but spam-free. Once you register with Bright Mail, you can allow your e-mail to pass through its special server, which maintains a list of known spammers and stops any mail originating from them. If you're comfortable having your mail pass through somebody else's computer, Bright Mail should stop 80 percent of your spam or more, free or charge.MORE >>