Spam controls on AOL Desktop for Mac

Spam Controls allow you to personalize your level of spam filtering. You can report junk e-mail and block unwanted e-mails right from your mailbox. To do that, select the e-mail you wish to report as spam, and then click the Report Spam button. The e-mail will be moved to the Spam folder. If you discover that an e-mail has been accidentally sent to the Spam folder, select that e-mail, and then click the Not Spam button. The e-mail will be moved to your Inbox.

FAQs

How do I Access Spam Controls on AOL Desktop for Mac?
How do I automatically block spam mails?
Can I decide who can send me mails?
What happens to my spam mails?
How do I control the content of e-mails?
How do I report spam mails?

How do I Access Spam Controls on AOL Desktop for Mac?

To access spam controls:

1. Click the AOL Desktop v10.1 menu, and then click Preferences.

2. Click the Mail icon.

3. Click the General tab.

4. Click the Edit Spam Controls button.

Note: You can have different spam settings for different screen names on your account. Click the Spam Settings for drop-down menu, choose a screen name for which you wish to set the spam controls for, and then click Go.

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How do I automatically block spam mails?

You can choose among the following levels to control unwanted e-mails coming into your Inbox or New Mail folder.

Note: The recommended setting is Medium.

• Off: Advanced Spam Filters are off. Messages suspected as spam will still be delivered to your Inbox or the New Mail folder.
• Low: Only obvious spam messages will be identified and delivered to the Spam folder. Some spam messages may be delivered to your Inbox or the New Mail folder.
• Medium: Almost all spam will be identified and delivered to your Spam folder. Check your Spam folder every few days to make sure that a non-spam e-mail was not accidentally delivered there.
• High: Virtually all spam will be identified and delivered to your Spam folder. This high level of filtering may inadvertently send non-spam e-mails to your Spam folder. Check your Spam folder regularly.

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Can I decide who can send me mails?

Yes. The Sender Filter allows you to control from which e-mail addresses you get e-mail by selecting one of the following options:

• Block mail from addresses I specify: In this box, type the e-mail address or domain name that you do not wish to receive e-mails from. You can add multiple e-mail addresses or domain names to this list by separating them by commas.
• Allow mail from all senders: Anyone can send you e-mail.
• Allow mail only from aol.com users: You will receive e-mails from email-addresses ending in '@aol.com' only.
• Allow mail only from people I know: Only people on your Buddy List® window or e-mail addresses in your Address Book can send you e-mail.
• Allow mail only from addresses I specify: In this box, type the e-mail address or domain name from which you would like to receive e-mails. Please note that, if you select this option, you will receive e-mails only from the addresses specified here. You can add multiple e-mail addresses or domain names to this list by separating them by commas.
• Block mail from all senders: No one can send you e-mail.

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What happens to my spam mails?

Once you have chosen your settings, you need to select how blocked e-mail should be handled. If you choose to delete blocked e-mail permanently, then all e-mail that is blocked will be deleted. This includes e-mail that may come to you from people who are not on a custom sender list that you may want to receive e-mail from. It is recommended that you have all blocked e-mails sent to your Spam folder.

You can select one of the following options from the Blocked mail drop-down menu:

• Permanently delete blocked mail: Delete all blocked e-mail permanently.
• Deliver blocked mail to Spam folder: Move all blocked e-mail to the Spam folder.

How do I control the content of e-mails?

The Content Filter allows you to control the e-mail that you receive on the basis of the content of the e-mail. The Content Filter section has the following options:

• Block mail containing pictures or files: If checked, any e-mail containing pictures or files will be blocked.
• Send mail containing specific words and phrases to my Spam folder: If checked, you can enter specific words or phrases in the box below. Any e-mail containing the specific words or phrases will be sent to your Spam folder. You can enter multiple words or phrases separated by commas.

Tip: Use the asterisk ( *) next to a word to allow partial matches to be marked as spam.

Example: Type "*berry" and it will mark e-mail containing words such as "strawberry" and "cranberry" as spam.

To add specific words or phrases which you want to block:

1. In the Send mail containing specific words and phrases to my Spam folder text box type a word or a phrase which you want to block.

3. Click Save to save your changes.

How do I report spam mails?

Select an e-mail, then click the Report Spam button. The e-mail will be marked as spam.

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