We have clicks on ‘Cancel Subscription’ in Correos without thinking. It is just what many cybercriminals expect

The entrance tray of our email usually becomes chaos. Or, at least, in a digital landfill where messages that we have not asked or want. The reasons are simple: in almost any online procedure, however innocent it may seem, they ask us for a Mail address. From registering on the website of your electric company to connect to the free wifi of a cafeteria, the email always goes ahead.

Then there comes a time when we decided to put some order in this personal space. One of the most obvious ways to start is to stop receiving emails that do not interest us. And for this, the most logical step is usually clicking on that link that some messages include at the end. It can appear as “cancel subscription”, “if you want to discharge, click here” or the classic “Unsubscribe”. The promise is clear: pulses and that sender disappears.

That click to stop receiving spam can take us just where we didn’t want to enter

The problem is that, although this function is legitimate, it can also be used for malicious purposes. According to DNSFilterthere are hundreds of cancellation links that actually lead to sites potentially dangerous. And that turns a harmless gesture – whispering an annoying email – into an entrance door for much more serious problems.

A real example of the ‘Cancel Subscription’ button that appears in many mails. In this case it is presented as ‘discharge’

When we click to cancel a subscription we are leaving the controlled environment of our mail supplier. It takes us to an external website, and there begins the risk. The link may not have us to lower us, but to confirm that our address is active. Like those calls that hang instantly: If you answer, you know you exist. Something similar happens here, but by email.

With that simple verification, who is behind can bombard us with more advertising to launch attacks on Phishing or more elaborate scam attempts. And that’s not all.

There are other even more dangerous possibilities. Some malicious links can try to inject malware In our system. It is technically complex, yes, but not impossible. It is also frequent that they redirect us to pages that mimic legitimate services. There, we can end up introducing our credentials or sharing personal data under a false promise of cancellation.

At this point, the doubt is inevitable: and then what do we do? Do we resign ourselves to a saturated input tray of trash emails? The answer is no. There are alternatives that allow to maintain control without assuming so many risks. The first step, as we have already mentioned, is to be aware of danger. Understanding it allows us to act with head. Let’s look at some others.

• Use the integrated function of cancel subscription. Some mail services, such as ICloud, Gmail or Yahoo, incorporate this option directly into their interface. It is a safer alternative than clicking on the message links. They usually appear at the top or lower part of the mail, and are part of the supplier’s environment, not the sender.

Gmail (above), Mail of iOS (center) and Yahoo Mail (below) include integrated buttons to cancel subscriptions from the app itself, without the need to open links inside the mail

• Mark the message as spam. Another option is to point out the mail as unwanted. The effect is immediate: the message disappears from the entrance tray and the system learns to block future similar emails. But be careful, it is convenient to use this tool only when we are clear that it is spam. Otherwise, we would be training badly to the system.
• Use disposable email addresses. It is a very useful third way, which we analyze in depth in the article ‘How I learned to use several email addresses to keep all my protected digital accounts’. Logic is simple: if the problem is to share our real direction, the most effective thing is to avoid doing so. And for that there are tools such as the “hide my email” function of Apple.

The option ‘Log in with Apple’ allows you to hide your real email and use a random address that you can delete at any time from ICLOUD

Those who use apple brand devices can activate this function by registering in a service. The system generates a random direction that forwards the emails to the main account. If you start receiving annoying messages, you just have to check which of those temporary addresses are coming and eliminating it.

It is worth remembering that this function is free, but those who have Icloud+ They can create new ones addresses at any timenot only during the registration process. This gives even more margin to protect privacy and improve security.

All this adds to the classical recommendations: maintain updated software and have a protection tool against malware. They are not absolute guarantees, but security layers that make a difference.

No, we will not be 100% safe. No system is. But we can be informed and take some measures to avoid falling into the traps that cybercounts have.

Images | Mariia Shalabaieva | DC Studio

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