In the ongoing battle against unsolicited spam [
previous episode here] a solution of sorts has been found. In a nut shell, most unsolicited mail sent through the Google Groups mailing system ("
*@googlegroups.com", "
gmr-mx.google.com", "
mail-wi0-f195.google.com", "
gmr-mx.google.com" et-al), is done without a users consent, because, Google group creators have always had the ability to add email addresses, usernames and Google Profiles to their listings without the express authorisation from the owners of said details. In effect users are forcibly subscribed to Google Groups they know nothing about.
Being able to do this is key to controlling it, whatever email, user account or Google profile has been used to subscribe a user without their knowledge has to be registered within, or to, the Google Groups system. As Google provides users the ability to list the group subscriptions associated with a particular identity, all the user needs to do is add the abused identity to their current Google Account to see what subs are ascribed to it, which then facilitates being able to manage, remove or report Groups.
So, here's how to 'manage' subscriptions to Google Groups and prevent the receipt of spam from *@googlegroups.com.
First sign-in or create a Google Account -
https://accounts.google.com. Once done, to view all the services associated with the particular account being viewed, from "
Accounts" (
https://www.google.com/settings/) click the "
Products" link to the left. In the page that opens click the "
Google Groups" button which should be visible - if not, just go to
https://groups.google.com/forum/ directly. This opens the 'home' page of Google Groups [
illustration 1]. On this new page click "
My Groups" to see the current list of Groups the Account email has been subscribed to (or is being used to subscribe to) [
illustration 2]. Click the 'offending' listing to access the group and associated messages [
illustration 3].
In the Google Group now being accessed click the "
My membership" button to view the groups subscription options [
illustration 4]. From here change the details as appropriate
if membership is still desired - switch the email address associated with "
Which address do you want to use for this group?", select the frequency of "
How do you want to read this group?", and/or change "
Display name". Finally click "
Update settings". To leave the group simply click "
Leave group", this should then prevent any further use/abuse of the address associated with the account.
As we're discussing spam here though the group will need to be appropriately flagged and reported [
illustration 5] by clicking the "
!" button at the top of the page and selecting an appropriate option form those thoughtfully provided by Google; "
Spam" in this instance.
Now the problem with all this is may have been obvious from the get-go. If not, it's two-fold; (1) this is yet
another service that has to be actively monitored, through no fault of ones own; and (2) because of the way this has to be done it essentially means 'giving' (*cough*volunteering*cough*) yet another piece of personal data to Google which can then be used for their own monitory purposes. That's for a separate discussion but they are important considerations.
Despite the above, there is a problem with Google Groups, or at least the new iteration of it. Previously when listing the groups an account was associated with, two additional "
Invitation preferences" options were available to users; (1) "
Do not allow group managers to invite me to their groups"; and (2) "
Do not allow group managers to directly add me to their groups" [
illustration 6]. Both these properties effectively, or rather are/were supposed to, prevent third parties specifically adding farmed emails to groups without the express permission of their owners - in other words, one might be able to unsubscribe from certain groups, but if an email remains available, there is nothing to stop future group starters adding the address and starting a new cycle. These options don't appear to be available in the new version of Google Groups. Whether this is an oversight, they are available but hidden somewhere, or a deliberate 'ploy' to force users to submit through the use of a "
Morton's Fork", is anyone's guess. But there not being a mechanism 'outside' the system to manage this issue has always been one of Google's nagging issues, even more so with the new policy changes being launched where data-access is being unified across all Google Account services.
[1] Google Groups 'home' page - click "My groups" to see groups currently subscribed to
[2] If a particualr Account email is being used to subscribe to a group or any desciption it will appear in the 'group list'
[3] Click on the 'offending' groups to view it's contents and access the managment panel/section
[4] Click the "My membership" button to access the groups options and settings where the both the Google Account 'username' and 'email' will be listed
[5] To report the group, click the "!" button at the top of the page. In the view that opens select and option and submit
[6] the old Google Groups interface includes two additional options supposedly preventing Accounts being added to lists without the users knowledge
