I have been using this software (SpamPal) for over 2 years now and it has gotten me what I need - a way to filter out the email spam. Well, yes, this is something my email host (that’s my ISP) should have done for me, but somehow they want like S$10 per month to do that. And I heard that the service is not reliable, with a lot of spam still being allowed through. So I went ahead and found this gem. It sits between your email server and email client. It then downloads the emails for you and then filters it according to blacklists (DNSBL lists) and whatever, and then tags any email found to be “spammy”. You can then use your email client to filter them out by setting up rules.

I have to say, Spam Pal really works. Sure, it is not prefect. But then, what is? I have never seen any “prefect” solution to the spam problem. Even my office’s supposedly “fool-proof” spam filter which cost like several thousand per year to setup, still lets spam in and worse, they block legitimate emails too. At least, Spam Pal is free, easily configurable and works with any email client (Outlook Express and all others) but only if you are using POP3 (Or IMAP) to retrieve your mails. It doesn’t work with Hotmail or other web-based email services.

So, if you are having problems with spam and your ISP won’t help (or charge you a head and a toe for it), then try Spam Pal. Just install it, do the necessary changes to your incoming email server settings and username, and let Spam Pal filter the spam for you. Of course, you then need to set up rules to send any tagged mails to a certain folder. That’s it. All done and you get the emails you need without the crap. It is for Windows only but supports a variety of languages.