Spam control guide

Where spam gets in,
tighten the entry point

Getting too much spam? Don’t block every message at once. Find the source—shopping, a community, or an app—and keep order updates and account recovery messages flowing. Then decide whether to unsubscribe, filter messages, or switch to a dedicated alias.

Spam already in your inbox

Clean it up in your inbox

Unsubscribe from trusted lists through the official settings, and mark suspicious messages as spam. If your old address has been exposed, you’ll still need your inbox’s filters and security settings.

Future sign-up addresses

Separate sources with aliases

For new sign-ups or sites that let you change your email, use a dedicated forwarding alias. If a source starts sending spam, tighten just that entry point.

Know what aliases can and can’t do: Tmppod can’t undo an exposed real email address or automatically clear ads already in your inbox. An alias hides the address you give to a site going forward—it doesn’t make you anonymous or guarantee you’ll never get spam.

Keep important messages coming. Cut the noise.

Three common sources, three ways to handle them

Start with a recent email and identify its source. You don’t need to move every account at once. Each guide below separates what to do about messages you already get from what to do the next time you share your address.

SOURCE 01 · SHOPPING

Keep order updates. Drop the promos.

A store’s shipping updates and promotional messages often come from different systems. Don’t block every email from a store just because you received a promotion.

Today: handle the two types separately

Check for open orders, returns, and warranty needs first, and keep related transaction emails.
Once you’ve confirmed the store is legitimate, visit its notification settings through the official website or app and turn off promotions. You can also use your inbox provider’s trusted unsubscribe option.
Don’t click unsubscribe links or attachments in suspicious “you’ve won” or “pay extra postage” emails. Mark them as spam in your inbox, and visit the official site directly if you need to check something.

Next time: use a separate alias for each store

When signing up, use an alias just for that store and note the store’s name in your records. If you change the address on an existing account, confirm it’s verified and your orders are still accessible before disabling the old alias.

Don’t disable it yet: If you’re still waiting for a delivery, refund, or customer support, turn off marketing emails first. Don’t cut off the account’s only contact address.

Next: Separate order updates from promotions

SOURCE 02 · COMMUNITIES

Turn off trending digests. Keep account recovery.

Reply alerts, daily digests, and security notices aren’t all the same. If you still need to sign in to a community, review its notification preferences instead of blocking every sender.

Today: change notifications in your account

Sign in through the official site you’ve bookmarked, then turn off unwanted trending digests, event updates, and marketing emails.
Check that your account recovery address still works, and keep essential notices such as sign-in verification and unusual login alerts.
If your address is visible in your profile or posts, remove it from public view. This can reduce future collection, but it can’t take back an address that’s already been copied.

Next time: use a dedicated alias for communities you use regularly

For a community you plan to use long term, choose a forwarding alias that can keep receiving recovery messages. Note which community and account it’s for, and avoid repeatedly posting your real primary email in profiles or signatures.

Don’t disable it yet: Change the community’s recovery address and verify it before disabling the alias. A one-time temporary address isn’t suitable for an account you’ll need to sign in to long term.

Next: Check whether your real email has been exposed

SOURCE 03 · APPS

Choose an address based on how long you’ll use the app—not how often you install it

Uninstalling an app doesn’t close your account, cancel a trial, or stop its emails. First decide whether you’ll need to sign in again, then choose what to do with the address and notifications.

Today: choose the right action for each situation

Just testing it once: If you don’t need billing, saved data, or account recovery, you can use a temporary address to receive one verification email. First check that the app accepts temporary addresses.
Planning to use it long term: Use a dedicated forwarding alias. Turn off marketing emails in the app’s account settings, but keep billing and security notices.
No longer using it: First check whether you need to manage a subscription or export your data. Then turn off notifications or close the account in the official settings. Stopping emails is not the same as canceling a charge.

Next time: plan for account recovery, even with a trial

If a trial is linked to a payment method, you may need to cancel renewal, or you might want to keep your work, use an address you can manage long term—not a temporary inbox that expires.

Don’t disable it yet: Disable the alias only after you’ve confirmed renewal is canceled, exported important data, and no longer need account recovery.

Next: What each type of email address is best for

Spam control action table

Unsubscribe, filter, or disable an alias—which should you use?

Check whether the source is trustworthy, then whether you still need to hear from it. If your address has already been exposed, creating a new alias won’t stop mail to the old one; handle each separately.

Match the email you’re handling to the closest row
Source and contact needs	Address status	What to do now	What it affects—and what it doesn’t
Trusted store Still need order updates or customer support	Real email address shared with the store	Unsubscribe from promotions in the store’s official settings; use your inbox to separate transaction emails from ads.	Unsubscribing removes you from that store’s marketing list. It may not stop transaction updates or remove messages already in your inbox.
Trusted community or app Still need to sign in or recover the account	Real email address linked to the account	Adjust notification preferences. If the service lets you change your email, switch to a dedicated alias and verify it.	Changing the address affects future contact. Whether the service keeps your old address depends on its policies.
Unknown or impersonating sender No known need for contact	Real email address may have been exposed	Don’t click links in the email. Mark it as spam and, if needed, set up a filter in your inbox.	Filters handle messages that reach your inbox; they can’t make an exposed address disappear. Don’t trust a sender based on its display name alone.
Known website Still need some emails	Already using a dedicated alias	Turn off marketing notifications, or filter by sender, recipient alias, and subject.	Keep the alias active to receive important messages. Disabling it stops all future mail to that alias—not just ads.
Website you no longer use Confirmed you no longer need contact	Already using a dedicated alias	Disable the alias once you no longer need subscriptions, refunds, or account recovery.	Future messages won’t be forwarded or added to your archive. Existing messages remain available for 30 days.
New website you’re about to join Need to stay in touch long term	Real email address not shared yet	Create a forwarding alias just for the site, sign up with it, and note what it’s for.	This keeps the new sign-up separate. It doesn’t affect personal information the site may have obtained elsewhere.

After making a change, keep an eye on your inbox: Unsubscribes can take time to take effect, and inbox rules may misfile important messages. Don’t change every source at once. Handle one, then check that order updates, security alerts, and verification codes still arrive.

Need to keep receiving messages? Set up a rule to filter out promotions

Example: protect a new sign-up

Give your next online store its own email address

Say you’re about to sign up for a new online store and will need to check your orders later. A forwarding alias is a better fit than a temporary address that lasts only a few hours.

Example address · Not an active mailbox shopfern7@tmppod.com

Note the store and account in your records. The example prefix may already be taken; use the address you actually create.

You can create up to 100 aliases per account. Start with the stores, communities, and apps you use most, then leave room for other sign-ups. You don’t have to move every account just to cut down on spam.

Estimate how many aliases you’ll need

Verify your real email address

Go to the separate sign-in page and enter a real email address you can keep receiving messages at. Complete verification with the code we send. There’s no account password; if you’ve enabled two-step verification, you’ll also need a code from your authenticator app.
Create an alias just for the store

Create an alias in your dashboard and enter the full address on the store’s sign-up page. Receive a verification email and confirm that your store account is verified and forwarding works before you start using it.
Check incoming messages and your archive

Messages received through an alias stay in your online archive for 30 days. You can also check messages marked as spam that weren’t forwarded to your real inbox. If you can’t find a verification code, check the archive before trying to sign up again.
When you’re done, disable only this source

If the ads keep coming, keep your order updates and account recovery available. If you still shop there, unsubscribe or filter the messages. Disable the alias only when you’re sure you no longer need it; your other aliases will keep forwarding. New messages sent to a disabled alias are discarded, and can’t be recovered from the archive later.

One thing to do today

Find the source of a recent marketing email

Note the website, whether it has your primary email or an alias, and whether you still need order updates or account recovery. Take action on that one source, then check that essential messages still arrive.

Before you take action

I can verify this source through its official website, not just trust the sender name in the email.
I know which notifications I need to keep, and disabling this won’t affect a refund, renewal cancellation, or account recovery.
I’ve separated cleanup of my inbox from protecting new sign-ups. I don’t expect one alias to fix every past exposure.

Not sure whether your address is at risk? Check for exposure

Choose the right address for the task

Get one verification email—or protect your next sign-up

Need just one verification code? Use a temporary address from the home page: receive-only, valid for 3 hours by default, extendable in 3-hour increments up to 24 hours. For order updates, notifications, and long-term recovery, sign in and create a manageable forwarding alias.

Use a temporary inbox Sign in to create a forwarding alias

Still not sure?Check whether your real email address has been exposed, then decide what to move.

Where spam gets in,tighten the entry point