Can AI Block Spam?

It’s doing so much else, right? Why not this?

This question caught me by surprise.

My reactions ranged from “Of course not” to “Oh, wait, maybe it could” to “Hey, it probably already is” to “Oh, darn, there’s a catch”.

Like much of the discussion around AI, there are so many possibilities it’s difficult to answer the question with a simple yes or no. But it’s definitely an interesting dive into the capabilities of AI and what it might mean, not only for spam but for other technologies in the future.

Let me make some semi-educated guesses.

No. Yes. Maybe?

My first reaction was a hard no. Of course AI can’t block spam because that’s not what it’s about. AI, by itself, is not a spam-blocking tool.

It can be used in many ways to generate, convert, and perhaps analyze email, but deciding what is and is not spam seems off-target for AI.

But then I realized how AI has already been applied to many things we’d never thought of. Almost anything can be a target for the application of AI.

Besides, that “analyze” I just mentioned seems right up the spam-blocking alley.

Then I realized it already is being used to block spam.

Spam filters are a kind of AI

Spam filters already look at spam and attempt to determine whether an email message is or is not spam. They use a variety of different rules (aka heuristics) to evaluate the characteristics of a message.

Bayesian spam filters use incoming spam and the signals from “This is spam” and “This is not spam” indications from users to improve the rules and make themselves better over time.

Given that the definition of AI is already kind of fuzzy, there’s a strong argument that AI has already been on the job: spam filters are a form of artificial intelligence attempting to make value judgments on incoming email.

But that’s not what you meant, I’m sure.

AI will make spam filters better

Current AI technology will almost certainly be incorporated into spam filters. In fact, I’d be surprised if this isn’t already happening.

I’ve no idea if they’re doing it, but as one example, I could easily see Google using Gemini (or the AI technology behind it) to augment existing spam-filtering technologies.

Will it be perfect? Will it block all spam? Sadly, no. It’ll likely get better, but won’t reach 100% accuracy. Not only is the definition of “spam” kind of fuzzy at the edges (something that’s clearly spam to you might be annoying but legit to someone else), there’s something else at play.

AI will make spam “better”

Spammers have access to AI as well. This has been seen in action already.

Spam messages are getting “better” in the sense that they’re becoming more difficult to distinguish from otherwise legitimate emails. A lot of spam is now better written, more highly targeted, and more clearly formatted.

AI makes spam more difficult to tell apart from something that might be legit.

AI: an arms race

Ultimately, that’s the catch: spammers and anti-spam tools both have access to improved technology. Today, that improved technology is AI. Both will use it to their advantage as best they can.

Spammers use it to create better-looking spam.

Anti-spam tools will use it to create better, more effective spam filters.

Each will “win” and pull ahead in the race for a while.

In the meantime, we’ll still get spam.

I asked AI

I asked ChatGPT (4o), and it was a little more direct:

Yes, AI can help block spam — and it already does in many cases. Email services like Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo use AI-powered filters to analyze patterns, language, sender reputation, and even images to decide what’s likely to be spam. It’s not perfect, but it’s much better than older rule-based systems. AI also adapts over time by learning from what you mark as spam or not.

So there you have it: as far as AI is concerned, it’s already on the job.

AI had suggestions

After that answer above, ChatGPT also asked me:

Want to know how to make AI spam filters work better for you?

What the heck! Let’s see what it has to say and how that lines up with my advice. Here’s what ChatGPT said.

To make AI spam filters work better for you, here are a few simple things you can do:

1. Mark spam as spam – When you get a junk message, don’t just delete it. Hit the “Report Spam” button. This trains the AI on what you consider unwanted.
2. Rescue good messages – If something lands in your spam folder by mistake, mark it as “Not Spam.” That helps the AI learn what should reach your inbox.
3. Be consistent – If you subscribed to a newsletter but never read it, unsubscribe instead of marking it as spam. That keeps the AI focused on true junk, not stuff you just don’t want anymore.
4. Avoid risky behaviors – Signing up for shady sites or clicking strange links can expose your address to more spam. AI will still try to catch it, but prevention helps.
5. Create rules or filters – For persistent annoyances, most email services let you set up filters to move or delete messages automatically. AI handles the rest, but a little manual help can boost accuracy.

This is essentially the exact list of steps I typically suggest.