Emails are a part of everyone’s lives, from the workplace to the home, but there are a lot of useless messages traveling through the internet. In fact, 85% of all emails are actually spam emails.
Junk email is often a term used to describe emails that end up going straight in the trash. Others might call it spam. However, there’s actually a key difference between the two.
Just because an email is unwanted, doesn’t automatically make it spam. Let’s take a look at the difference between junk email vs spam.
What is Junk Email?
Junk email refers to any email that the receiver doesn’t want. It’s a general term that can be applied by any person whenever they get unwanted email.
This can include anything from companies sending out sales emails to invitations to irrelevant events. Of course, one man’s junk is another’s treasure, which can make it hard to identify junk email.
One person might love to hear about sales to be had on handbags, while another would deem that junk email. That’s why the term can be applied pretty liberally and will be different for different people.
Thinking of it in postal mail terms, junk email would be digital versions of any letters or leaflets that would get thrown in the trash. In the same vein, most junk emails get immediately deleted and ignored.
What is Spam Email?
Many people might think junk email and spam are one and the same. However, the intent behind the emails is what sets the two apart.
Most spam messages are sent with malicious intent, although not always. They will also likely not be tailored to the individual in any way, but rather sent out in mass numbers.
Spam messages don’t always come through as emails, either. People might receive spam on social media, via text, or other forms of online messaging.
The purpose behind spam is often to do with scams of some kind, rather than simple irrelevant messaging or advertisements. Services like Google, Facebook, and other email providers or social media platforms have intelligent systems designed to filter out spam.
By contrast, junk email is usually sorted by the recipient, as it varies so widely from person to person.
How to Reduce Unwanted Emails
Whether it’s just misdirected marketing campaigns that get discarded as junk or more sinister spam emails, unwanted emails are an annoyance for everyone with an email address – or even a danger.
Just last year, online scam attempts were up by 25% in the United States. Spam can put people at risk of accidentally getting embroiled in these scams, losing them money or even their identities.
Aside from that, junk is also time-consuming to sift through and can mean important emails get missed. That’s why reducing spam emails isn’t just possible but important.
Now that you know more about junk email vs spam, you can have a safer and more enjoyable time online, without an inbox that stresses you out.
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