Merchants selling email IDs

[adrkaushal]

It is strange, since the day I signed up with three ecig merchants, I'm getting lots of spam. And those merchants I signed up with have a great reputation here at ECF. I don't know which one of the three is doing this to me but I'm getting almost 30 spam emails everyday and the spam is on rise This is really sad. I can name the merchants I have signed up with but seriously can I be sure who is selling out customers' email IDs?

(In last 20 days, I have not given my email ID to anyone and have NOT signed up anywhere else apart from those 3 reputed merchants)

The spam is related to the same sick thing (You've won a lottery. Niger**n cash. etc). Merchants, can you please stop doing this nonsense? It just gives everyone a headache. Stop selling my email ID please. Otherwise, I will create fresh email accounts and sign up at your website. And then single out your sorry ....

I don't know what to do with all this junk I keep getting but thought I should share this with others and know if others got spam after signing up with merchants.

Merchants, its a wakeup call for you. Beware, I might catch you easily and expose you here on the forums.

 

[oldsoldier]

This is really not a site feedback discussion., but more of a computer "security" discussion -- So I moved it.

Just remember all it takes is for your email to be posted one time in a blog feedback or forum post somewhere and you'll get spammed once the email harvesting bots find it. Another thing to remember is your email address can be harvested and held. Spam companies prefer to get huge address lists so they tend to grab larger lists not piecemeal from someone that can perhaps give them 5 or 10K. Also you must consider that spammers also use bulk mailing software that spams entire email domains with dictionary lists of common user names.

Hell I get spammed for the same BS stuff on my forum address daily... Using disposable addresses does help in determining where the spam is coming from, but I really hope your email address was sold by someone other than one of the suppliers here on ECF.(Actually I'm almost willing to bet it wasn't).

 

[woden57]

I have a strong feeling the same thing has happened to me. Maybe we can cross reference and track them down.

 

[Fury83]

Silly question maybe...did you check the T&C's they usually make you check off before purchasing or signing up an account, you might have agreed to it.

I haven't any issue with this happening myself, just a thought. I'd advise you to actually read them and if it didn't say they keep your info private, you're kind of rolling the dice.

 

[adrkaushal]

I'm a tech savvy person and I know about the email sniffers/collector/harvester software and that's why I never leave my email Id in open. And, I avoid signing up with too many merchants. This is the reason, I ask a lot of questions here on the forums so that I don't have to go hit the "contact us" page of merchant websites. There can be a number of things .. someone at their offices is harvesting email IDs and selling out illegally .. someone hacked their databases and took out all of the email IDs .. or whatever lol.

May be some other reason why I'm getting loads of junk all of a sudden, that's why I did not list those merchant's names here. I don't wish to give a bad name to anyone unless I'm too sure. But this was more of a warning if anyone is doing bad stuff.

I hate spam to death. So I will create new email IDs and use one email ID for one merchant and will signup again at all 3 merchants. I have also received a few merchant names through PM because some other people think they have experienced a similar pattern of junk after signing up with a few merchants. I will check them all and then I will post their names here so that either they can find the culprit within their organization or be answerable for promoting junk.

Most of the people reading this may say I'm over reacting. But sorry, I hate spam to death and will do whatever it takes to kick spammers in the place where sun don't shine!

 

[adrkaushal]

Silly question maybe...did you check the T&C's they usually make you check off before purchasing or signing up an account, you might have agreed to it.

I haven't any issue with this happening myself, just a thought. I'd advise you to actually read them and if it didn't say they keep your info private, you're kind of rolling the dice.

That's a good suggestion. No question is silly, its just how we interpret it.
I will make sure to read terms and conditions of those merchants where I signed up an account.

Thank you everyone for your input, really appreciate

 

[Killowatt]

For this reason I have one email I give out to all web sites, and another for friends and family only. The one for friends and family only, I almost never get spam, the other I get 4-5 a day and report them as spam. Don't just delete them, report them as spam and they get blocked, but of course the spammers most likely have many more email accounts, but it does reduce them.

 

[tiburonfirst]

i'm signed up for the newsletter from quite a few merchants here and have not had a spam problem and i use just one gmail address!


now, having made the stupid mistake of following a link on fb for a free ipod a year or two ago i know how it feels to look at a spam deluge daily. it took the better part of 6 months to get back to normal

 

[oldsoldier]

there is no such thing as a free lunch

 

[TH'er]

I too have been spammed.. and I don't post my email online.. It's a Bunch of BS I tell ya..

and I've only ordered from 5 or 6 vendors..

Provape, Ibtanked, AIV, HHV, Discount Vapors, & Smoktek

oops and Wizard labs

 

[tiburonfirst]

i still think y'all putting the blame in the wrong corner - have you ever considered it might be your ip?

 

[Killjoy1]

i still think y'all putting the blame in the wrong corner

I agree. I've ordered from a lot of different vendors over the last two years, including some less-than-reputable ones, and have not encountered any change to my spam intake from before I started vaping. there are a LOT of ways your email address can get out there even without you posting it anywhere

 

[oldsoldier]

I agree. I've ordered from a lot of different vendors over the last two years, including some less-than-reputable ones, and have not encountered any change to my spam intake from before I started vaping. there are a LOT of ways your email address can get out there even without you posting it anywhere

though this link is related to a commercial service the information is applicable

Dictionary Attack Spam