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Google says Drive spam files are safe to open, but don't click any links
A recent rash of phishing attempts asks users to approve suspicious files
Ever since the dawn of the internet, spam, malware, and viruses have been a part of our vocabulary. Entire companies have been torn down over executives clicking the wrong link in an email, and with scam call centers growing in size and proficiency, it’s more important than ever before to become online-literate and report things like phishing text messages. Google has had more than its fair share of spam concerns over the years but has done a lot to fight it off, including creating tools to reduce the amount of spam emails in Gmail. Recently, there’s been a surge of spammers that are targeting users of Google Drive, so much so that Google has responded to user concerns regarding the issue.
There are a lot of scams online, and it's becoming increasingly difficult to dodge scammers who target you via phishing texts, emails, fake ads, and spam calls. To make matters worse, tricksters use bots and advanced algorithms to make you fall into their traps. An average smartphone user receives numerous spam and phishing messages daily.
How to report and block spam in iMessage
Learn how to mute, filter, block, and report spam on your iPhone
Apple has made several questionable decisions, like killing the headphone jack in favor of AirPods and other wireless earbuds. However, iMessage is not one of them. iMessage is one of the crown jewels of the Apple ecosystem. It's included in the default messaging app on the iPhone and offers all the modern messaging features you require from such a service. iMessage has everything from supporting text and voice messages to sending photos and videos and adding cool message reactions.
Emails are a big part of our lives, whether it's staying connected with loved ones, handling work stuff, or keeping track of orders. But not all emails deserve your time and attention. Maybe you receive emails from senders you'd rather ignore before they reach your inbox. Gmail makes it easy to do that by blocking unwanted email addresses.
It may not deserve it, but RCS gets a bad rap, particularly in areas where encrypted messengers like WhatsApp reign supreme. Even in the US, it's met with apathy, as iMessage has the mindshare despite Google's best efforts to move the needle. But it's an industry standard, not a walled garden, and for those who use it, the addition of web-based features like end-to-end encryption and message reactions make it a vastly superior alternative to SMS and MMS. However, it appears the standard is not immune to one of its predecessors' biggest issues: spoofed phone numbers sending spam texts.
How to reduce spam emails in Gmail
You can no longer use spam as your go-to excuse for a cluttered inbox
Many of us use Gmail for work, to stay in touch with friends and family, and to track online purchases. Gmail is easily accessible from a desktop PC, an Android phone, an iPhone, or a budget Chromebook. However, its ease of access also makes it a target for spammers. Gmail has a robust spam filter, but its built-in safeguards may let annoying spam through. In this guide, we show you how to manage and reduce spam emails in Gmail.
In the six years since TikTok launched overseas, it's inspired over two billion downloads worldwide (over one billion on the Play Store). It has over one billion monthly active users. Those numbers put it in the same league as Facebook and YouTube. However, it also invites the same problems that plague all large social media sites: spam.
With more than two billion monthly active users (MAU) and growing popularity among small businesses, receiving spam messages and calls on WhatsApp is common. Before you know it, scammers and spammers can jam the chatbox with promotional offers and advertisements. After all, anyone only needs your phone number to contact you on WhatsApp. Among these irrelevant messages, phishing links, and scams, you may miss important alerts.
Twitter's new DM spam-reduction plan feels like yet another way to promote Twitter Blue
Users can now filter requests from accounts they don't follow only if those accounts are verified
Twitter has come under fire recently for a lot of reasons (many of them quite fair). Ever since Elon Musk took over the site in 2022, changes have been quick and frequent, resulting in an exodus of sorts from many long-term employees. On the product side, Twitter has faced no shortage of problematic issues, from a nightmare of API changes, to service outages, to complaints of price gouging. One thing that hadn’t been fully addressed since Musk took over was the amount of spam direct message requests that Twitter users had to deal with. Today, Twitter announces a new DM feature in an effort to further combat spam — but it sure feels like it's being used to promote Twitter Blue.
Google Drive is about to get a Gmail-style spam folder
For all those unwanted documents bots keep sending your way
Google Drive is in the middle of somewhat of a rejuvenation. Earlier this year, the cloud storage platform's interface received a pretty significant update, bringing its Material You design to the workspace. Now in the coming weeks, Google Drive will receive another much-needed update, this time in the form of an upgrade to its spam protection.
WhatsApp needs to make fighting spam its top priority
You can block it and then bother WhatsApp about it
kYou may be asked for your phone number when visiting a store, whether you're there to get something fixed or to purchase something. Then, within seconds of sharing it, you might receive messages from the store on WhatsApp, and some of those may have nothing to do with your recent visit. Why did this happen when the store didn't ask for your consent to deliver updates and ads on WhatsApp? You may have noticed that the employee tablets have the option to toggle it off. However, it curiously stays on by default.
Spammy ads are invading Google Messages — here's how to get rid of them
It takes just a few taps to reclaim your inbox
Armed with RCS, Google Messages is the current face of the company's longstanding quest for a worthy messaging app. While the multipurpose SMS app now has the features to rival the likes of WhatsApp, it still fails in one key area—and that area is spam. That’s especially true when the sources are verified business accounts that have been hassling scores of users lately with spammy in-chat advertisements within Google Messages.
Spam isn't just the bane of your personal email — if anything, it's even more aggressive about weaseling its way into work inboxes. While many spam messages are easy to spot immediately, bad actors still try to use clever lures, including attempts to make the recipient believe emails are from someone familiar, like a co-worker or friend. In its endless uphill battle against spam, Google has added a feature to Workspace that will help ensure we all waste a little less time trying to figure out if the messages we receive are the real deal.
Instagram is collecting video selfies to help fight the spambot scourge
Unsolicited DMs and comments, begone!
Meta-owned social media network Instagram appears to be rolling out a new user authentication system that should cut down on the number of spambots plaguing the ecosystem.
Signal is taking the fight to spammers with new message request features
It will blur your profile photo if you get a message from outside your contacts
Signal is probably the best option available for Android users who want a secure personal messaging app. Since the beginning of 2021, the app has increased its user base substantially and hit 50 million installs on Play Store earlier this year. Even though it's private and secure, users still get annoying spam messages which can be extremely irritating. In its fight against spammers, Signal has made some modifications to its message requests and link handling.
Google will start enforcing its new anti-spam Play Store policies in September
Your Play Store search results should start to look a whole lot cleaner
Read update
As a blogger focused on Android, I see a lot of spammy app names in the Play Store. Apps with extraneous descriptors trying to pop up in more searches, apps that include the name of other, more popular apps, or even (shudder) emoji in the names. Someone at Google is as tired of all that as I am, because there's a new set of guidelines for developers publishing apps in the Play Store.
Google Drive's new blocking tool is here to help put an 'end' to spam
At least until the attacker makes a new email address
It's been more than two years since Google acknowledged Drive spam is a real issue with the service, and we've been patiently waiting for any action to be taken. In May, the company confirmed a solution was on the way, allowing users to block email addresses from sharing content with you in the future. After a couple of months, that fix is finally being made available to Drive users.
YouTube is trying to make comments better no wait really please come back
The folks that work at YouTube must never have to deal with comments, huh
Internet comment sections can be fertile grounds for flourishing conversations or a powder keg of vileness. For many sites including YouTube, managers may push reminders for writers to be civil, hide the sections away, or not have them entirely. Now, the Google-owned social video platform is giving some creators the ability to implement rules in their comment sections as part of a pilot program.
Everyone please copy Verizon's latest spam call fighting tool immediately
The ability to block calls based on area code alone is a feature that's long overdue
I've had the same phone number since Google Voice launched back when I was in college, over a decade ago. I've moved (lemme think) seven times since then, and not a single person I still know is calling me from the Bryan-College Station area. So when spammers copy my area code in a lame attempt at engagement, I only answer the phone if I'm in the mood to waste time and mess with some criminals.
Chrome won't spam you with notifications thanks to this upcoming change
Helps keep your presentation distraction-free
There's no denying that getting slammed with notifications is quite distracting. With the global pandemic causing a dramatic shift in how many of us do our jobs, it's now more important than ever to present at your best with screen sharing tools like Google Meet — free from any distraction. An upcoming Chrome change will take that one step further to help you stay focused and on track.