Both the web interface to GMail and the GMail Android app have separate ways of
reporting spam and phishing. I don't think users should be burdened with
distinguishing them.
For example, I get a lot of unwanted email offering loans. To check whether
it's spam of phishing, I would need to give them my personal data. If I get a
loan, then it's spam. If I don't, it's phishing (or maybe they don't like my
credit score). Obviously, I'm not going to perform that test.
I also get unwanted messages in languages I don't understand. Should I give the
sender the benefit of doubt and assume that they are just advertising something
rather than trying to steal my data? Or should I err on the side of safety for
other users and report the message as phishing?
I believe Google is in a much better position to distinguish spam from
phishing. It employs people who read different languages. It can generate
aggregate statistics. It can use sophisticated filters.
GMail users should have one button to report spam. Reporting (as opposed to
automatic classification) should imply permission for Google employees to read
the message and deal with it. This should be communicated to the user once (not
every time as the current web interface does).
One button less means a better user interface and less time wasted on spam
fighting.
Original issue reported on code.google.com by plros...@gmail.com on 25 Mar 2015 at 5:25
Original issue reported on code.google.com by
plros...@gmail.com
on 25 Mar 2015 at 5:25