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Nearly everyone has an email address. Email is a useful tool at home and in work but spam and junk mail can be a problem. Spam emails offer all kinds of things like money, prizes and very low prices for products that are normally very expensive. They can contain malware too.

Spam is very difficult to avoid but there are ways to reduce it:

• Use a spam filter – most email clients try to stop spam from reaching you by using a spam filter. It recognises common spam emails and stops them from getting through. Check your spam email regularly as sometimes real emails are mistaken for spam.
• Do not give your email address out – if you don’t trust the website or if supplying your email address is optional, don’t give it to them.
• Keep an eye out for tick boxes – when you sign up to a website, it might try to sign you up to its newsletter. Read the small print next to the tick boxes carefully.

Phishing

Trying to trick someone into giving out information over email is called ‘phishing’. You might receive an email claiming to be from your bank or from a social networking site. They usually include a link to a fake website that looks identical to the real one. When you log in it sends your username and password to someone who will use it to access your real accounts. They might steal your money or your identity.

Your bank will never send you an email asking for your personal information or your username and password.