Why don't spam filters always work?

Spam filters employ various techniques to identify and filter out unwanted or unsolicited emails. However, spam filters may not always work as spammers continuously adapt their techniques to bypass them. Spammers may use tactics such as obfuscation, image-based spam, or random text to evade detection. We have also seen a rise in personalized spam, that appears to be sent directly to an individual. This target spearphishing may only have text and a separate phone number or email address to contact; since this may only go to a single recipient, filters have a hard time detecting whether this content is legitimate. Finally, new spam tactics, known as zero-day attacks, may not be recognized by spam filters until they have been analyzed and updated with new rules or patters.

Spam filters can improve over time with user feedback and training data. If you suspect that you have received malicious unsolicited email (spam) to your UMBC account, report it to UMBC DoIT. This helps us to determine the scope of the messages, and can help to prevent these malicious messages from appearing in inboxes in the future.