No SPAM thanks - we're all grown-ups here!

We're a friendly bunch here on Networking in Surrey - but we don't welcome SPAMMERS!

Some of our Members received a message from a newly posted Profile that was clearly SPAM, and thankfully let me know straight away. First, here's what the message looked like:

Clearly drivel - but also a waste of every body's time, including the SPAMMER themselves. My email to these quick-witted NiS Members who contacted me right away, tells the story...

"Thank you to the switched-on Networking in Surrey Members who have alerted me to a suspect message sent to you by our newest Member, who signed up yesterday.

Rest assured, I suspended and blocked the offender within ten minutes of getting the first email from a Member raising doubts about the integrity of the sender.

We do occasionally (probably half a dozen times a year) get a rogue sign-up claiming to work for a genuine company, and I nearly always spot them before their Profile gets approved.

Company websites don't always show all their personnel, especially new staff, and although I do also check LinkedIn and other platforms to try to identify people, I usually give new sign-ups whom I can't pin down as much 'benefit of the doubt' as I feel is sensible - but the odd crank inevitably gets through.

They usually then try sending an obviously spammy message to individuals (there's no bulk messaging function on the site, except for me as Administrator).

Spammers doubtless don't realise that our Members are all savvy business folk who have no truck with this sort of nonsense. Fortunately, the only data on Members' Profiles is what they have freely shared, and we don't track activity, or ever sell your data under any circumstances.

I'm sure this would pretty much go away if I were to start charging for Membership, as I did in our first few months of operation back in 2010, when people paid £5 per month to have a Profile on Networking in Surrey. If it becomes more prevalent, I may re-introduce a fee for new Members (existing Members won't be affected, of course).

On reflection, it would be lovely if our 2400+ Members were paying me a fiver each every month (voluntary donations gladly accepted)!

Thanks again for your vigilance and patience, and for supporting our free NiS community...

Cheers

Keith