Coping with Email Spam

Filtering/Deleting Unwanted Messages in Microsoft Outlook 2002

The filtering capabilities of Microsoft Outlook can be used to delete unsolicited and unwanted email messages — i.e., "junk" mail or "spam". This document describes how. The instructions pertain to Outlook 2002 but similar capabilities are also available in previous versions.

• Using Outlook's "Organize" Feature to Delete Junk or Adult Content Mail
• Using the Rules Wizard to Delete Unwanted Mail
  • Deleting Messages from Specified Sources
  • Examples
  • Filtering by Exclusion
• Modifying and Deleting Message Rules
• Emptying Trash

Using Outlook's "Organize" Feature to Delete Junk or Adult Content Mail

You can use Outlook's "Organize" feature to instruct the program to delete messages you identify as junk or mail containing adult content.

1. On the folder list click the appropriate Inbox folder (e.g., imap.csun.edu-Inbox).
2. From the Tools menu, select (click) Organize.
3. Select (click) Junk E-Mail to see the options.
4. Choose from the drop-down menus so that the organization statements read as follows:
• Automatically move JUNK messages to Deleted Items.
• Automatically move ADULT CONTENT messages to Deleted Items.
5. For each statement, click Turn On to activate the deletion of junk and adult content messages. (The button then changes to Turn Off. You can click it if you no longer want to delete send junk or adult content email.)
6. To close the "Organize" pane, click the Close button (x) in the upper right corner of the pane.

Then, when you want to filter unwanted email messages from a specific source, right-click a message from the offending sender in the Inbox, point to Junk E-Mail on the shortcut menu, and choose either Add To Junk Sender List or Add to Adult Content Senders List. From then on, all messages from this sender will be automatically deleted.

Using the Rules Wizard to Delete Unwanted Mail

The Outlook Rules Wizard provides a way to delete messages based on rules you specify.

Deleting Messages from Specified Sources

1. Start the Rules Wizard
   1. On the folder list, click on the Inbox folder (e.g., imap.csun.edu-Inbox).
   2. From the Tools menu, choose Rules Wizard… to display the "Rules Wizard" dialog box.
   3. Click the New… button to display the "Rules Wizard" dialog box. It is here that you'll begin to set the criteria for filtering messages by defining rules.
   4. Click Start from a blank rule.
   5. Click the Next> button.
2. Set Conditions
   1. Under "Which condition(s) do you want to check?" click in the box next to the desired action.
   2. Under "Rule description:" click the underlined value to edit it (i.e., specify the rule).
   3. After entering the filtering text, click the Add button.

      For example, to search for all messages coming from a sender called "Greatest Specials", you would scroll down to and choose (click) the condition "with specific words in the sender's address" and then click specific words under "Rule description:". In the "Search Text" dialog box that appears, you would enter Greatest Specials as the "words or phrases to search for in the sender's address".

   4. At this point you add more rule descriptions (e.g., additional "specific words" to search for). When finished click the OK button.
   5. If there is another condition you'd like to define, you can make another selection from the list and repeat Steps 5a-d. When finished click the Next> button.

      For example, to add a search for all messages that contain the phrase "Huge Volume Today" in the subject line, you would choose (click) the condition "with specific words in the subject" and then click specified words under "Rule description:". In the "Search Text" dialog box that appears, you would enter Huge Volume Today as the "words or phrases to search for in the subject".

3. Set the Action
   1. Under "What do you want to do with the message?" select the desired action. To delete messages that meet the criteria, choose the delete it option (to check it).
   2. Click on the Next> button.
4. Specify Exceptions (if any)
   1. At this point you can specify exceptions to this rule, if so desired, by clicking the desired exception(s) under "Add any exceptions (if necessary):".
   2. When finished, click the Next> button.
5. Name and Turn On the Rule
   1. Enter a name for the rule under "Please specify a name for this rule:".

      You might name a rule that deletes unwanted mail (as described in the examples above) "Junk Mail".

2. Activate this rule to filter new messages by checking the Turn on this rule option.
3. If desired, apply this rule to messages already in your Inbox by checking the Run this rule now on messages already in "Inbox" option.
4. Click the Finish button.
5. Click the OK button.

Examples

Two examples of filter rules for deleting unwanted messages are shown in Figures 1 and 2 (below).

In Figure 1, the filter name is "Junk Mail" and the rule description specifies that if the sender portion of an incoming email message contains the phrase "Greatest Specials" or if the subject portion of an incoming message contains the phrase "HUGE VOLUME TODAY", the message is to be deleted (i.e., moved to the Deleted Items folder).

FIGURE 1. Rules Example for Deleting Messages from Specific Senders or Subjects

Figure 2 illustrates a rule in which an exception to the rule is specified. You may want to filter out all unrequested sales pitches but still receive messages from someone you know whose surname is Sales. In the example shown the rule name is "Sales" and the rule description specifies that if the sender portion of an incoming email message contains the word sales AND the sender of the message isn't csales@csun.edu, the message is to deleted (i.e., moved to the Deleted Items folder).

FIGURE 2. Rules Example With Exceptions Specified

Filtering by Exclusion

Rather than deleting mail from a number of distinct sources, you can use another filtering approach to retain messages from known legitimate sources in your inbox (and/or other folders) while sending everything else to a separate folder. Using this method, you can easily see those messages you know you want to look at. Then, at your leisure, you can peruse the folder containing what may be junk mail — and you can delete all unwanted messages. If you find legitimate messages in the folder, you may want to refine your filters, so that subsequent messages from the same source won't be filed in the "potentially-junk folder".

To use this method, follow the instructions outlined above with the following changes:

• Set Conditions (Step 2): Under "Which condition(s) do you want to check?" DO NOT check anything. Simply click the Next> button and answer Yes when asked if you want to apply the rule to all mail you receive.
• Set the Action (Step 3): Choose "move a copy to the specified folder" and specify the desired folder.
• Specify Exceptions (Step 4): Choose "except with specific words in the sender's address" and specify the word(s).

Examples

• If the only mail you want to read is likely to come from a CSUN campus source, you can define a rule as follows:

  Apply this rule after the message arrives
  move a copy to the Not CSUN folder
  except with csun.edu in the sender's address

• If the only mail you want to read is likely to come from an American university, you can define a rule as follows:

  Apply this rule after the message arrives
  move a copy to the Not EDU folder
  except with .edu in the sender's address

• If you have already created rule descriptions to filtering messages into folders by topic, sender, or some other organizing principle, you might add one of the above as a final rule.

Modifying and Deleting Message Rules

To modify a rule, do the following:

1. On the folder list, click on the Inbox folder (e.g., imap.csun.edu-Inbox).
2. From the Tools menu, choose Rules Wizard… to display the "Rules Wizard" dialog box.
3. Highlight (click) the rule to be modifed.
4. Click the Modify... button.
5. In each of the Rules Wizard dialog boxes make any changes desired.
6. Click the Finish button in the final dialog box to complete the process.

To delete a rule (and all criteria it contains), do the following:

1. On the folder list, click on the Inbox folder (e.g., imap.csun.edu-Inbox).
2. From the Tools menu, choose Rules Wizard… to display the "Rules Wizard" dialog box.
3. Highlight (click) the rule to be deleted.
4. Click the Delete button and answer Yes when asked if you really want to delete the rule.
5. Click the OK button.

Emptying Trash

Until the trash is emptied, deleted files are retained in the Trash folder. Therefore, be sure to empty the trash periodically to remove unwanted messages permanently. From the Tools menu, choose (click) Empty "Deleted Items" Folder.

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August 14, 2003

Prepared by Kurt Webb and Gail Said Johnson, User Support Services

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