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Mail Filters in Mac OS X

Operating System: Mac OS X v10.4

E-Mail Filtering: Learn how to configure your junk mail filter using Mail for Mac OS X.

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Setting up a junk mail filter for Mac OS X is easiest in Mail. The junk mail feature is only available in v10.2 or higher version of OS X.

Start by opening mail. If it is not in the dock you can find it by clicking Go from the top menu bar and selecting Applications. Mail is one of the applications available. Double click it to open.

Click Mail in the top menu bar and mouse over "Junk Mail". Click Training. This training mode will allow mail to "learn" what you think is junk and what isn't. During this training period emails that mail thinks are junk will be hilighted brown. If you feel that this email is not junk, simply choose the "Not Junk" option that appears at the top of the email message. Also, if there is an email that you feel is junk but mail does not, you can train it and fix this problem by selecting the "Junk" option on the tool bar while the problematic email is selected.

After about 2 weeks of moderate use mail will be ready to end training and begin really getting that junk mail out of your way. After 2 weeks, click "Mail" in the top menu bar and mouse over "Junk Mail", and click "Automatic". Now every email that Mail thinks is junk will be placed in a "Junk Mail" folder. You can go there at any time and make sure Mail is doing its job in keeping what you want out out and what you want in in.

Even when Junk mail is set to automatic, modifications can be made. If mail that you feel is junk is found in your inbox, you can mark it as junk mail by the method described earlier. Also, if mail that you feel is not junk ends up in the junk mail box, you can mark it "Not Junk" by the method described earlier.