Certified Email

Though it isn’t currently used on a widespread scale, both AOL and Yahoo currently have plans in the works to develop certified email systems. For an estimated $0.25 per email or $2.00 to $3.00 per 1000 emails, advertisers will be able to post messages capable of penetrating most spam filters commonly used by ISPs (Internet Service Providers) at the server level. Experts believe that certified mail will make spam unprofitable if used effectively on a large scale, reducing useless email traffic and the spread of computer infections. Those critical of certified email believe that such a system will not prove so effective as new technologies will eventually be developed to circumvent it. Being that the system is optional, spammers will still have the ability to freely distribute bulk email. The notion of certified email has been controversial from day one. Some years ago, a rumor circulated stating that the U.S. government were planning to charge internet users for sending and receiving email. While this rumor was proved false, many protests arouse from the American public as some viewed the move as a regressive tax that would send small businesses plummeting to the ground.