Live data from Hacker News

Block and Unsubscribe

gmailblog.blogspot.com

31–40 of 131 posts

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#32
post #17

> That’s why you can now block specific email addresses in Gmail [...] Future mail will go to the spam folder (and you can always unblock in Settings). It's nice to have a one-click button for it, but this was already available by configuring a filter. You just need to select all emails from a particular address and then choose to always mark them as spam or send them directly into the trash. From the headline I was…

Still, this is an easier way to apply that filter. I've found filters to not always be that easy to set up... so I can only imagine how average users deal with them, aka probably not at all.

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#33
post #2

I wonder if this is just a shortcut to create a filter. That would make the most sense, at least.

Yep. I think less sophisticated users would be intimidated by creating a filter and this solves for that.

Count me as a “less sophisticated user.” I lack the patience to futz about clicking and selecting on things when all I want to do is block someone.

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#34
post #15
post #3

Does anyone know how the unsubscribe feature works? Does it follow the unsubscribe link in the email, or does it use some other mechanism?

It's worth noting on top of what others have said, Gmail (and assume most others too) will only display the unsubscribe button from whitelisted mail servers, as far as I'm aware. The reasoning being that it could be used by spammers to confirm an email address is real/valid after a user attempts to unsubscribe at which point they could sign them up to more spam. So don't expect your own emails to show the button by j…

This has been oft-repeated conventional wisdom from years, but I think we're giving most spammers way too much credit.

I run several mail servers, and addresses that have not existed for well over a decade, and always give 5XX responses, still get spam.

As long as spam is profitable, because it pushes all negative externalities off to someone else, it is not worth a spammer's time to cull their lists.

I simply do not see this happening.

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#35
post #3

Does anyone know how the unsubscribe feature works? Does it follow the unsubscribe link in the email, or does it use some other mechanism?

What I don't understand (possibly noob question), is the scenario where I get spam and I click on "Report spam" to be prompted with "Unsubscribe and report spam".

I'd never subscribed to it so why am I asked whether I would like to "Unsubscribe". Is it that the spammers got hold of my email from somewhere and "Subscribed" me automatically?

Shouldn't "Report spam" implicitly imply that it's not a subscription?

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#36
post #17

> That’s why you can now block specific email addresses in Gmail [...] Future mail will go to the spam folder (and you can always unblock in Settings). It's nice to have a one-click button for it, but this was already available by configuring a filter. You just need to select all emails from a particular address and then choose to always mark them as spam or send them directly into the trash. From the headline I was…

I wonder though if they have taken it out of the filter flow. Filters are interesting in that they can really slow things down, and if a previous one fires before the send to trash one does, sometimes it has a different result. If they have called this out as a behavior that can happen on the inbound pipeline, and more importantly if they can reflect it back as a 5xx error to the sender, it would be nice improvement.

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#37
post #3

Does anyone know how the unsubscribe feature works? Does it follow the unsubscribe link in the email, or does it use some other mechanism?

What I don't understand (possibly noob question), is the scenario where I get spam and I click on "Report spam" to be prompted with "Unsubscribe and report spam". I'd never subscribed to it so why am I asked whether I would like to "Unsubscribe". Is it that the spammers got hold of my email from somewhere and "Subscribed" me automatically? Shouldn't "Report spam" implicitly imply that it's not a subscription?

People use the Report Spam button on things that they explicitly signed up for all the time, and Gmail has adjusted its behavior to match how users use it rather than try to persuade them to instead do the right thing.

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#38
post #17

> That’s why you can now block specific email addresses in Gmail [...] Future mail will go to the spam folder (and you can always unblock in Settings). It's nice to have a one-click button for it, but this was already available by configuring a filter. You just need to select all emails from a particular address and then choose to always mark them as spam or send them directly into the trash. From the headline I was…

[deleted]

Re: Block and Unsubscribe

#40
post #6
post #3

Does anyone know how the unsubscribe feature works? Does it follow the unsubscribe link in the email, or does it use some other mechanism?

I believe it uses a header the sender includes with the email http://www.list-unsubscribe.com/

Cool. I doubt those intrusive marketing emails will ever include that header though.
Post reply on HN