Google’s Aggressive Crackdown On Gmail Spam Starts Soon, What To Expect

Google will soon be cracking down on spam emails sent to Gmail accounts. The company announced the upcoming changes in October of last year, remarking new protections were coming to provide a safer, less spammy inbox.

Anyone who has ever had an email account has probably encountered their fair share of spam emails. They can be very annoying, and can also be more difficult to unsubscribe from than necessary. Well, Google is about to attempt to change that for owners of a Gmail account with a few new features from how how bulk senders authenticate, to allowing for users to more easily unsubscribe.

Google understands that having an email account is almost a necessity for people these days. Whether it be for work, or a personal account to enter all the giveaways on social media, people are creating email accounts for many reasons. Often, those accounts become cluttered by emails sent by bulk senders. Bulk senders are email senders that send close to 5,000 messages or more to personal Gmail accounts within a 24-hour period.


One aspect of emails sent by bulk senders that is particularly concerning is that many don’t appropriately secure and configure their systems. This allows nefarious characters to easily “hide in their midst,” according to Google. In order to reign in bulk senders, Google will require them to validate who they are. While this may not sound like an important thing to do, the tech giant says that since it started requiring emails sent to a Gmail address have some form of authentication, Gmail users have received 75% less unauthenticated email messages.

Another aspect of the upcoming changes will be a welcome one for many. Google says users shouldn’t have to “jump through hoops to stop receiving unwanted messages from a particular email sender.” So, the company will require that large senders give Gmail recipients the ability to unsubscribe with just one click, and that they process unsubscription requests within two days.

The company will also add another protection for Gmail users, in that it will enforce a clear spam rate threshold that senders must remain under to ensure Gmail recipients are not buried with spam emails. Google touts that this is an industry first, and should result in less spam in the inbox of its users.

Google has also given a few tips in the past on mistakes people make with their accounts, and how to make them safer:

• Don’t use the same password everywhere. 
• Be sure to keep device software up to date. 
• Enable two-step verification. 
• Set a screen lock PIN on mobile devices. 
• Do not click on any suspicious links.

Using Gmail should be an enjoyable experience. Users should not have to worry about getting a virus after opening an email sent to them. Hopefully, the upcoming changes Google will make will help with that.