Waging war on spam

A former Palos Verdes Estates man was sentenced Tuesday to nearly four years in prison for sending hundreds of millions of e-mail spam messages.

But for those of us with overflowing in-boxes, lost personal messages and computer viruses, the time he'll serve might not make up for the pain and time he has cost.

We can't help you there. But we can help prevent future spam from wasting your time and in-box space.

If you're a consumer, the Federal Trade Commission site can explain what anti-spam rules mean for you. If you're a business owner, the site has information about how they affect commercial e-mails.

The site also includes links to resources that can help you reduce the amount of spam on your electronic plate.

And if you want in on some anti-spamming vigilante action, you can fill out a form to report suspected spammers.