Does Donald Trump really want you? Will the Penis Patch improve your sex life? Is your mortgage application ready? Can you lose 6-20 inches in one hour with a body wrap? Did Lisa send you to the wrong site?
The answer to each of these questions is almost certainly no. But they are examples of increasingly sophisticated methods spammers are using to prey on email users this year, according to AOL's third annual Top 10 Spam List.
This year's analysis of hundreds of billions of attempted spam messages targeting AOL's global email customers finds that spammers are using more "special order" style subject lines. In fact, six in 10 of the top subject lines this year fall into this category, compared with just two in 2004 and none in 2003.
Instead of generic pitches for products, "SOS" or "special order spam", attempts to trick the consumer by pretending to be from a friend, or part of a legitimate, customer-driven transaction. For example, this year's Top 10 spam list features "Your Mortgage Application is Ready"; another claims to have sent "you to the wrong site," and others simply say "Thank you" or "Re: " as if they are responding to the recipient.
Returning favorites on the AOL Top 10 list include pitches for products that claim to improve physical appearance, sexual material, and offers for prescription drugs.
The AOL 2005 Top 10 global spam subject lines are as follows:
1) Donald Trump Wants You - Please Respond
2) Double Standards New Product - Penis Patch
3) Body Wrap: Lose 6-20 inches in one hour
4) Get an Apple iPod Nano, PS3 or Xbox 360 for Free
5) It's Lisa, I must have sent you to the wrong site
6) Breaking Stock News** Small Cap Issue Poised to Triple
7) Thank you for your business. Shipment notification [77FD87]
8) [IMPORTANT] Your Mortgage Application is Ready
9) Thank you: Your $199 Rolex Special Included
10) Online Prescriptions Made Easy
Charles Stiles, AOL's Postmaster said,
"Spammers have been on a year-long mission to mislead and deceive in 2005. While the volume of spam reaching AOL email inboxes has remained at low levels compared to it's height in late 2003, the spam that's out there is more insidious, crafty, devious, and dangerous than ever. So when it comes to protecting your in box, consumers should adopt a 'code red' mentality for 2006, because ultimately their personal identity is at stake."
AOL has also been blocking an average of 1.5 billion spam messages each day from reaching the email boxes of customers. The total number of spam emails blocked by AOL in 2005 reached over a half trillion (556 billion) - a slight increase over 2004. Finally, the percentage of total email that AOL blocks as spam at the gateway reached 80% in 2005 (or, AOL is blocking 8 out of every 10 attempted emails as spam in 2005).
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