Fake Ebay and Paypal e-mails which are used to con users out of money are being targeted by a secure mail system.
The online auction site and web pay service are working with Yahoo to use the firm’s anti-phishing technology.
The firms are supporting the emerging standard known as domain keys, which block fake e-mails by validating the sender with a digital signature.
Spammers hide their identity by using a false, or spoofed, address in the millions of messages they send out.
The technology, called the DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM), will be available to millions of Yahoo Mail users worldwide in the coming weeks.
"It is a big step forward for consumers in defence against the bad guys," John Kremer, vice president of Yahoo Mail, told Reuters news agency.
Full story here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7027451.stm