How to protect your e-mail address from spammer.

• Only share your primary e-mail address with people you know. Avoid listing your e-mail address in large Internet directories and job-posting Web sites. Don't even post it on your own Web site
• Set up an e-mail address dedicated solely to Web transactions. Consider using a free e-mail service to help keep your primary e-mail address private. When you get too much spam there, simply drop it for a new one.

• Create an e-mail name that's tough to crack. Try a combination of letters, numbers, and other characters eg. 2g0al@example.com (substituting zero for the letter "O"). Research shows that people with such names get less junk e-mail.

• Disguise your e-mail address when you post it to a newsgroup, chat room, blog, or other public Web page-for example, BeeGood At GoodDomain DoT com. This way, a person can interpret your e-mail address, but the automated programs that spammers use often cannot.

• Watch out for pre-checked boxes. When you buy things online, companies sometimes pre-select check boxes by which you indicate that it's fine to sell or give your e-mail address to responsible parties. Clear the check box if you don't want to be contacted.