American E-mailers Increasingly Fed Up With Computer Spam

GALLUP NEWS SERVICE

PRINCETON, NJ -- If you're annoyed, exasperated, or infuriated by unwanted e-mail in your inbox, you're not alone. As the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation prepares to examine issues related to unwanted e-mail messages (often called "spam") this week, a recent CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll finds that most e-mail users consider spam to be a significant problem. In fact, trends suggest that the percentage of people who consider spam a problem has doubled in the last three years. A sizeable minority of current e-mail users tell Gallup they quit or considered quitting an e-mail service because of the spam problem.

The basic facts are staggering. Internet service provider Earthlink estimates that 40% of the e-mail that comes through its system is spam. Brightmail, a spam prevention company, says that 45% of e-mail sent is spam. AOL claims that 70% to 80% of its incoming e-mail is spam. Jupiter Research reports that the average e-mail inbox gets 42 spam messages a day.

USA Today quotes an estimate that more than 2 trillion pieces of spam are expected to be sent over the Internet this year. That's trillion with a "t."

Strong Majority of E-mail Users Get "A Lot" of Spam E-mails

An April 22-23 CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll underscores the psychological impact (some would say damage) of spam. Two-thirds of e-mail users (representing 67% of the public) say that the amount of unwanted e-mail reaching them is so high that they consider it a problem. This is up substantially from 37% who were bothered in 2000 when a Pew Internet and American Life Project poll asked the same question.

Do you get a lot of "spam" or unwanted e-mail messages, or isn't this a problem for you?

Based on e-mail users

While it's unclear whether the cause is differences in e-mail volume or differences in personal style, younger e-mail users are more bothered by spam than are older ones: 76% of those in the 18 to 29 age group say spam is a problem, as do 60% of e-mail users aged 50 and older.

Fewer Than Four in 10 Spam Recipients Considered Quitting or Quit an E-mail Service

Much of the polling on computer spam suggests that people bothered by spam deal with it the old-fashioned way. They hit the "delete" key.

But some are doing more than that. The April CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll finds that close to four in 10 e-mail users who consider spam a problem have actually quit or have considered quitting their e-mail company in order to get away from the deluge of spam. That's a pretty substantial percentage when one considers that the burden of coordinating and communicating the change makes switching e-mail accounts as much of a headache as changing banks.

In the past year, have you quit an e-mail service or considered quitting an e-mail service because of the amount of spam e-mail you get? Did you quit or did you just consider quitting?

Based on e-mail users who get a lot of spam e-mail messages

All polls on this subject show widespread public support for the idea of legislative remedies for the spam problem. One poll conducted for SurfControl, a company that makes filters that control spam, found that 86% of business e-mail users are in favor of laws that would help control illegal spam. In fact, the state of Virginia enacted a new bill two weeks ago that makes it a felony to use false addresses when sending large numbers of e-mails.

Spam More Problematic at Work or at Home?

A Pew poll released last December suggested that spam is much more of a problem at home than at work. About half of all home users report that one-quarter or more of the e-mail they receive is spam, compared to that of only 21% of business users. That's probably because businesses have better spam filters, or perhaps because people are more likely to use their home computers for outside activities, which increases the chance that their e-mail address will be captured by roving spammers "harvesting" e-mail addresses.

Survey Methods

The latest Gallup results are based on a national telephone survey of 1,001 adults, 18 years and older, conducted April 22-23, 2003. Roughly two-thirds of this sample (65%) -- 692 respondents -- say that they use a computer at home or work to send or receive e-mail. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum error attributable to sampling and other random effects is plus or minus 4 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

How often do you, personally, use a computer at your home, place of work, or school—frequently, sometimes, occasionally, or never?

Please tell me if you ever go on-line to send or receive e-mail.

[BASED ON -- 809 -- ADULTS WHO USE A COMPUTER AT THEIR HOME, WORK, OR SCHOOL]

Do you get a lot of "spam" or unwanted e-mail messages, or isn't this a problem for you?

[BASED ON – 692 -- COMPUTER USERS WHO GO ON-LINE TO SEND OR RECEIVE E-MAIL]

Trends for Comparison:

Do you get a lot of "spam" or unwanted e-mail messages, or isn't this a problem for you? (Source: Pew Internet and American Life Project) (Based on national adults who use a computer at least occasionally and ever go on-line to receive or send e-mail)

In the past year, have you quit an e-mail service or considered quitting an e-mail service because of the amount of spam e-mail you get? [IF YES PROBE]: Did you quit or did you just consider quitting?

[BASED ON -- 448 -- E-MAIL USERS WHO GET A LOT OF "SPAM" E-MAIL MESSAGES]

* -- less than 0.5%