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VOICE ONE:
This is Shirley Griffith.
VOICE TWO:
And this is Steve Ember with the VOA Special English programEXPLORATIONS. Today, we tell about the growing problem of receivingunwanted sales messages on your computer’s electronic mail.
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VOICE ONE:
Twenty-five years ago, a man namedGary Thuerk worked for a company called Digital Equipment. One dayhe used his computer to send the same message tothree-hundred-ninety-seven other computers. These computers all werelinked to an electronic network called Arpanet. The Arpanet computersystem was used to aid communication among scientists, researchersand government officials.
The message sent by Gary Thuerk told about the products hiscompany was selling. Many of the people who got the message becameangry. But several others used their computers to tell him they wereinterested in receiving information about Digital Equipment’sproducts. This was the very beginning of what computer users nowcall “spam.”
VOICE TWO:
I suppose we should explain theword “spam.” SPAM is the name of a food product made by the HormelFoods Corporation in Austin, Minnesota. SPAM is processed pork meat.It is sold in small blue cans in more than forty-one countriesaround the world. The Hormel Corporation has produced this popularfood product since nineteen-thirty-seven. The word “SPAM” was thewinning name in a contest the company held to name the new pork meatproduct.
VOICE ONE:
Computer users who receive unwanted electronic information callthis kind of electronic mail “spam.” Computer users named it spambecause of a funny joke on a popular British television programcalled “Monty Python’s Flying Circus.”
In one program, a group of people was sitting in an eating placethat served only the processed meat called SPAM. Every time theytried to say something, another group of people would sing, veryloudly, “SPAM-SPAM-SPAM, Wonderful SPAM.”
This interfered with people’s conversations in the same way thate-mail spam makes computer communication more difficult. Computerusers began using the word to mean unwanted electronic informationthey did not ask for and did not want.
The Hormel Corporation has kept a sense of humor about this useof its product’s name. Company officials say they do not care.Hormel sells more than six-million cans of their pork meat everyyear.
VOICE TWO:
The use of electronic spam to sellproducts has become a major problem for many computer users. Arecent study showed that most computer users receive aboutone-hundred unwanted electronic mail messages or spam each week.Some people receive much more.
We even have a spam problem in Special English. We receive morethan twenty e-mail messages from our listeners around the world eachday. That is about six-hundred messages a month. We are happy toreceive these messages.
However, we receive even more spam e-mail from around the world –about thirty-five messages each day. That is about one-thousand eachmonth. Many of these messages are written in foreign languages. Theyare advertisements for products from other countries. We can removemuch of the spam very quickly. However we must read some of thesemessages to make sure they are not messages from our listeners.
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VOICE ONE:
It would be difficult to count all of the spam sent across theInternet computer communications system each day. Some expertsestimate that more than seven-thousand-million spam messages aresent around the world each day. Some experts say more than half ofall e-mail sent is spam.
One company that deals with huge amounts of spam is AmericaOnline, a major Internet service provider in the United States andseveral other countries.
A-O-L says it uses special electronic programs to block spam thatcomes into its communications system. A-O-L says it blocks more thantwo-thousand-million spam e-mail messages each day. The A-O-Lcompany is only one of many Internet service providers that face thesame problem.
Internet service providers must buy larger and more powerfulcomputers in an effort to deal with this huge amount of electronicmail. The cost is paid by everyone who uses a computer linked to theInternet.
VOICE TWO:
Many companies send sales information or advertising on theInternet to people who are interested in receiving it. Thisinformation tries to influence people to buy almost any product orservice possible. The products include shoes, clothing and food.
You may open your electronic mail and find information about howto buy medicine, cheap airline tickets, books, sexual products and,of course, computers and computer products. There may also be offersfor investment deals, bank loans and special holidays.
Many companies who want to send a great deal of advertising mightuse the services of a “spammer.” A spammer is a person or companythat uses computers to send out millions of copies of the same salesinformation. Spammers find e-mail addresses from Web sites,newsgroups and “chat rooms” where people send messages to eachother.
VOICE ONE:
Most spam is sent by companies who are trying to get you to buytheir products. Some of these are honest companies that offer goodproducts or services for a fair price. These companies can offertheir products at a cheaper price than you might find in a store.However, much of the spam on the Internet is sent by criminals whoare trying to sell products that do not exist or offer services theywill not provide. They are only interested in stealing your money.
Some of these messages want you to buy special medicines thatwill improve your sexual performance. Or they want to give yousomething for free. When you answer their spam you find you areexpected to send them money and receive a gift. One country inAfrica has become famous for the number of criminals who try everyknown trick to separate people from their money.
VOICE TWO:
Recently, American Attorney General John Ashcroft announced thatmore than one-hundred-thirty people have been arrested for criminalactivity using the Internet.These criminals cheated people out oflarge amounts of money. Much of this money was taken from people whohad answered a spam e-mail offering a product or a service. Theypaid for the product and received nothing.
Mister Ashcroft told reporters that these criminals are cheatingthe public out of millions of dollars each year. He also said thegovernment is increasing its efforts to stop this kind of crime.
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VOICE ONE:
Spam has become a major problem for many computer users. Manyangry people have begun to fight back. Among these are privatecitizens, Internet service provider companies and several stategovernments. The federal government is also considering anti-spamlegislation.
The state of Virginia approved an anti-spam law in April. It isnow illegal to send large amounts of spam to the citizens ofVirginia without a correct return address. The new law says peoplecan be sent to jail for as much as five years if they violate thelaw.
VOICE TWO:
Many states have approved laws that say spam messages mustinclude a way to tell the sender that the sales information is notwanted. This request usually tells the spammer not to send any moreinformation to this address. Several states also have laws that saythe spam must include a written statement saying the message isadvertising. Or it must say the message advertises sexual products.
This permits the person who receives the spam to remove itimmediately. Several companies have now begun selling computerprograms that will block spam. One computer industry expert saysthese programs are successful. However, people who send spam arebusy working to develop ways to defeat the anti-spamming programs.
VOICE ONE:
Last week, the United States Federal Trade Commission toldCongress there is no quick method to solve the problem of the hugeamount of spam. There is no solution to the increased cost of spam.Trade Commission officials said solving the spam problem will take acooperative effort involving new technology, new laws and action byprivate citizens.
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VOICE TWO:
This program was written by Paul Thompson and produced by CatyWeaver. I’m Steve Ember.
VOICE ONE:
And I’m Shirley Griffith. Join us again next week forEXPLORATIONS, a program in Special English on the Voice of America.