Massive increase in spam emails lately, since M&S leak - anyone else?

[Whatwaswrongwiththatusername]

Not an actual AIBU, but wanted to see if - and how many - of you have noticed this as well.

Basically the above. I have recently had a massive increase in spam in my junk mail folder. This is an email address that I’ve had 25 years now, so obviously a certain amount is to be expected. However, overall there wasn’t really much - certainly didn’t outnumber “normal” mail that lands in my funk folder, not very many at all really.

But recently I suddenly started getting a ridiculously large volume of spam now - multiples of many of them. They now outnumber, by far, the rest of the mail (these are usually the regular subscribed stuff, sites used for shopping etc etc). The only thing I can think of that has happened was the M&S cyber attack, assuming now my emails been sold all over the place. It’s driving me potty! I have to block and then delete each one in turn, but it just doesn’t stop them coming back, especially the multiples - as I assume they run some kind of random email addresses from their server (or however it works), so I still continue to get the same ones over and over again, as they seem to just keep sending from different emails so the blocking is rarely successful.

Has anyone else noticed this, or have any idea why, if you think it’s not the leak?

Not sure how to change the poll, but;
IABU = no, you’ve seen no change yourself
IANBU = yes, you’ve noticed it as well
Thank you.

I should’ve screenshot the ones I blocked and then mass deleted earlier. I am sure there will soon be more, and you’ll see that there’s multiples from each of the different ones, and why blocking just isn’t working.

I hadn’t realised the connection - but me too

Yes and texts

I created a post about this in another user name on the day the leak was announced.

It's interesting to check this site to see if your email has been leaked (and where from) https://haveibeenpwned.com/

Same for me

they do go into junk - but so do a few of my legit emails so I do need to check which is irritating

No, can't say i have

It’s the scam CV texts that I’ve noticed. Never had one before the breach but I’ve had a ridiculous number since then.

All very well M&S giving vouchers to customers who had orders cancelled - but no help to the rest of us - thinking about the profile of some of their customers some will click on the links and end up in a whole lot more trouble ( thinking about my own MIL)

I have an M&S account, but I have not noticed any increase in spam. I rarely got any over the past 20 years and I still rarely get any.

The past few weeks I have had loads of texts, some about jobs or claiming to be from Indeed saying my CV is popular and check out the link, and others about parking tickets (I don't drive).

Oh funny, it was in the back of my mind to ask folks if they’d experienced this too. I learned how to mass-block email addresses but yeah, same experience that the same “companies” keep coming through on different addresses. Have had this email address about 25 years too! It’s really annoying as I get some emails in my junk that are legit but they’re buried by these swathes. I have a professional address for truly important stuff, but I don’t want to get rid of my old one—I have emails from teenage friends, some of whom are no longer alive, so it’s an important account to keep.

Lots from “liz buys homes” lawn improvement stuff, veteran discounts and cancer lawsuits. Everything feels very American in language?

And calls too. Loads of them!

• [email protected]

I think this is the email to forward them too - worth doing to help protect those that are likely to fall for them

I don't have an M&S account, but spam seems to have really ramped up over the last couple of months - so much obviously rubbish stuff mentioning McAfee, Shein and Curry's.

One extremely irritating thing that quite a few of them do is to spoof it so that their rubbish actually looks like it's been sent by you - so you can hardly block your own email address.

They all look so clearly like spamming rubbish, but I suppose they must get enough people who don't understand the concept of spam/scams and engage with them to make it worth their while inundating the rest of us.

Incidentally, I would never click to unsubscribe fron a spammer where I'd never subscribed in the first place, as that just confirms that your email address is live and will likely result in far more spam.

Spam calls and texts have ramped up for me recently as well. The Truecaller app is good, but doesn't stop them from actually keep ringing.

In the old days, you'd sign up with the Telephone Preference Service to 'opt out' of irritating calls (like anybody had ever opted in in the first place) and that was largely respected - or at least they apologised if they ignored it and called anyway and you challenged them.

Now that it's all VoIP originating from anywhere in the world, with powerful robocallers, it's an absolute free-for-all for spammers and scammers.

The price of good people being able to easily, cheaply and conveniently get in contact with each other across the world is that bad people can do exactly the same.

There’s been no change for me (and I do have an M&S account).

Yes, I’ve been inundated with spam and I definitely think it’s linked to M&S. I used to get none.

I have had masses, but I have accounts with Co-op and M & S and there was an attempted hack on my Facebook account from Australia. It’s worth looking at your email account as I discovered when I had a very convincing fake text message that appeared to be from Giff Gaff (it was even added to the same message thread on my phone) that forwarding had been set up from my email, to an account in Eastern Europe.

I have changed all my passwords, but am still getting a lot of spam and as per PP they are very similar email addresses that I have blocked repeatedly.

I'm another one who has seen a huge increase in spam emails over the last few weeks, coming into my inbox. I hadn't linked it to M&S, but I guess that is possible.

Me too, upto 30 a day, and spam mobile calls, 6 or 7 every bloody day.
i’m sock of it but nothing seems to work for stopping them.
I have closed my M&S account, I don’t trust them or anyone else’s security at the moment.

Yes definitely noticeably more and often to tell em I've won a prize from M&S

I've had the CV ones too. I'd forgotten until I read this.

Yes!! Same here. Plus spam calls and texts from recruiters.

I only accidentally used this email address for M&S otherwise it's only used for formal stuff so I know it's from M&S

I havent seen a difference and also have an m&s account. In fact just checked emails and I havent received a single email today that I didnt sign up for.

Same, I’ve got loads of job text messages :-/