(NAPSA)—We’re living in a great technological dichotomy: the information via e-mail. Make sure you do not share personal information on the Internet unless you are confident you know thesite and/or the person receiving the more timesaving devices we accu- mulate, the less time we seem to have. As technological wonders information. Layer your spam protection. become more mainstream, the lat- est gizmo or gadget always seems to re-introduce the hope that this is the one that will enable us to achieve some lofty goal—whether it be working from home on Fri- days, coaching a child’s soccer team, taking that extra-long vacation, starting our own business or, times), exercising (3.32 times), Alas, we remain at the mercy of our widgets and whatsits as we seek ways to carve out a few extra combination of common sense by simply, retirement. minutes here or there. Well, according to a recent survey, a great place to start is with the great technology time bandit— spam. The “McAfee Americans and Spam Survey” revealed that 49 percent of Americans spend more than 40 minutes per week deleting spam, with 14 percent report- ing they spend as much as three and a half hours a week. That adds up to 7.5 days over the course of the year. Eliminate spam before it gets to your inbox and there’s your vacation. “Consumers are seeing more and more spam crowding their inboxes. All indicators point to a continuing upward trend,” said Bryson Gordon, McAfee Security’s chief spam prevention officer. The study also revealed that Americans delete spam dozens of times more per week (30.6 times) than they engage in other activities including calling parents (3.39 reading to kids (2.81 times) and even having sex (2.18 times). Gordon adds, “It will take a consumers, spam prevention tech- nology and legislation to free consumers from spam.” He offers e-mail users the following helpful tips to keep their privacy intact while saving time in their day for more essential tasks. Use public e-mail addresses to surf. Spammers are getting smarter and are using new techniques to trick people into opening spam including “trolling” user groups, chat rooms, job-search sites and even legitimate online dating sites as sources for “live” e-mail addresses. Especially for those who lead an active online lifestyle, setting up a separate e-mail address to be used when engaging in these activities can lessen the number of spam e-mails your primary e-mail account will receive. Restrict personal information. Reputable companies such as banks and government agencies will never ask you for personal Even if your Internet service provider (ISP)filters spam, install a desktop-based application such as McAfee SpamKiller to keep your in-box virtually spam-free. Installing virus prevention and firewall software will also help to ensure your online safety while surfing the Web. Do your due diligence. Check out a Web site’s privacy policy before sharing any personal information, and “opt out” of receiving additional information if you don’t wantit. The extra time spent reading a site’s policies certainly will offset the countless hours wasted deleting spam. Want to stop spam altogether? As a valued voter, you can contact your local congressman to urge them to consider spam legislation in your area. Time isn’t just money. It’s also the currency with which we purchase the most important things in life—spending time with loved ones or pursuing our passions. Don’t let spam rob you of this most valuable commodity. Armed with these simple tips, anyone has the ability to stop spam before it wreaks havoc on their in-box and their time. For more information, visit: www.mecafee.com or call the United States Capitol switchboard at: 202-224-3121 to contact Congress about spam legislation.
