Spamware

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What Does Spamware Mean?

Spamware is a software utility designed specifically by spammers for spamming. Spamware enables a user to search, sort and compile a list of email addresses and provides an automated email broadcasting solution. This can be used to send spam or unsolicited emails to unsuspecting recipients.

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Not all software that sends bulk email is spamware, as email listserver software can be used for legitimate purposes, rather than spam.

Techopedia Explains Spamware

Spamware is built around the typical operatives, methodologies or processes that enable a spammer to deliver unsolicited email. Most spamware focuses around gathering email addresses and sending automated emails to all of them through a single platform. This is done through bots that search email aliases from designated systems or websites. More advanced versions of spamware may have the ability to deceive spam filters or firewalls by altering the message header, or by using fake identities/IPs and/or inappropriate proxies.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology expert

Margaret is an award-winning writer and educator known for her ability to explain complex technical topics to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles in the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret’s idea of ​​a fun day is to help IT and business professionals to learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.