Gmail is Now Blocking 100 Million Extra Spam Messages Every Day With AI (theverge.com)

Google has recruited its in-house machine learning framework, TensorFlow, to help train additional spam filters for Gmail users. With the new filters in place as of last month, the company claims Gmail is now blocking an extra 100 million spam messages every day. From a report: In the context of Gmail's 1 billion-plus users, this isn't necessarily a huge gain -- it works out as one extra blocked spam email per 10 users -- but Google says Gmail already blocks 99.99 percent of spam, so working out what constitutes that last sliver of a percentage is hard.

Comments

Props when deserved

[TFlan91]

Use gmail for work for decade+, spam has certainly never been a problem.

Although, it does seem to be a bit aggressive sometimes.

And the result is more false positives

[kbahey]

And, the result is more false positives ...

In the past 6 to 8 weeks, I found several emails from people I know in the Spam folder.

The strange thing is that those were from email addresses are in my contact list, and have been communicating with me for years.

Bad move Google ...

Re:And the result is more false positives

[Solandri]

The strange thing is that those were from email addresses are in my contact list, and have been communicating with me for years.

Being in your contact list is not a white flag. A common tactic of spam malware is to send the contact list of infected person's PC to the spam author. They then spam everyone in the contact list using the owner of the list as the From: email address, precisely in the hopes that an email "from" someone you know is more likely to make it past your spam filter.

Blocked or filtered to Spam folder ?

[ardmhacha]

I have had a GMail account since the invitation only days. I actually got an invite from someone giving them away on slashdot. I am careful about where I use the address and I get very little spam (about 10 / month or less).

When I read about GMail's great spam filters I wonder does that mean that the spam emails are actually blocked (ie. never make it to me at all) or just filtered to my Spam folder.

Re:Blocked or filtered to Spam folder ?

[RhettLivingston]

I've probably been using gmail as long as you. Might have even got the invitation from the same place.

I'm fairly positive that all spam goes to the spam folder. I can't remember the last time I had to mark a spam message. I do look at the spam folder periodically for its entertainment value and to keep up with the flavor of the current scams. I haven't had a false positive in many years.

Re:Statistical filters... not AI.

[Anonymous Coward]

if it's software it's ai
if it's material it's 3d printed

I spend a lot of time in the "Junk" folder now

[Tablizer]

It's making my business negotiations with Nigerian princes very difficult. Maybe I should go into boner pills instead.