Nearly 95% of e-mail is junk

Nearly 95% of e-mail sent in 2007 has been 'spam', junk advertising loathed by its recipients, according to a report released by a United States Web security firm. The amount of junk e-mail has skyrocketed despite a 2004 US Can-spam Act that placed restrictions on sending unwanted messages and sanctioned penalties for 'spammers', according to California-based Barracuda Networks.

Spammers cunningly hide their identities by routing e-mails through other people's websites, blogs or computers. The spam war is a continuous battle between spammers and security vendors. Security vendors now require 24x7 defence operations to continuously monitor the Internet for new spam trends and distribute new defensive solutions immediately.