KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Google is implementing changes to Gmail to combat spam, including requiring bulk emailers to authenticate their emails, and reducing malicious emails by 75%.
- Bulk senders will be required to include an ‘Unsubscribe’ button in emails, making it easier for users to unsubscribe from commercial emails with just one click.
- Google’s efforts to reduce spam are being supported by Yahoo, who plans to implement similar features to de-clutter their users’ email inboxes and make these changes an industry standard.
Google is making a series of changes to Gmail to root out spam for good. As part fo its plans, bulk emailers who send more than 5,000 messages per day will now be required to authenticate their emails in a move that the company believes will “close loopholes exploited by attackers that threaten everyone who uses email.” The mandatory authentication program started last year, and Google says it has already helped reduce malicious emails by 75 percent.
Another major change that should also help users easily avoid spam is the requirement for bulk senders to include an ‘Unsubscribe’ button with every email. According to Google, the button should help users unsubscribe from commercial emails with just one click, and the entire unsubscription process should be completed within two days. In addition, Google will also enforce a “clear spam rate threshold” that senders must stay under to further reduce unwanted messages. Google claims that this is an “industry first” and should help reduce spam even further.
Interestingly, Google is not the only webmail provider that is pushing for these changes. Yahoo announced that it will also implement the same features to help its users de-clutter their email inboxes. In a statement announcing the company’s plans to fight spam, Yahoo’s Senior Director of Product, Marcel Backer, said that the company is “looking forward to working with Google and the rest of the email community to make these common sense, high-impact changes the new industry standard.”
Spam has become a major problem over the years, and new techniques implemented by spammers are making it harder for email providers to fight it effectively. According to a report from cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, 48.63 percent of all emails sent in 2022 were spam, and many of them included phishing links as cybercriminals tried to profit from people looking for software and movie downloads. So while Google’s latest move is definitely a step in the right direction, it remains to be seen how successful it will be in preventing spam in the long run.
