the different types of SPAM

Scams

This type of junk e-mail is geared towards getting you to give money or data (such as your credit card information or important passwords) away to an illegitimate cause.

Hoaxes

In general, hoaxes attempt to convince you that something untrue is true. These often go hand in hand with the other types of SPAM.

Malicious Code Warnings

These SPAM e-mails attempt to trick you into removing standard and potentially important applications from your computer, falsely claiming that the applications in question are viruses.

Chain Letters

Much like the pen-and-paper chain letters of the past, e-mail chain letters promise something good will happen if you forward them to enough people, and that something bad will happen if you do not.

Urban Legends

These e-mails are intended to scare you. Often, they detail gruesome things that have supposedly happened, and aim to make you feel disgust or horror about totally fabricated events.