Plenty has been written about the evils of spam. It has become such a problem that there's even a local company, Pau Spam, which specializes in keeping it out of your life.

However, this is not the kind of spam that Shane Victorino is fond of. I'm talking about the kind that clogs up your “;in box,”; not your arteries.

Not only is your PC vulnerable but it's now invading your cell phone. It can be more than annoying by making your phone to ring or vibrate at inconvenient times.The bad news is that it can cost you money—typically 10 to 25 cents per message, if you lack a text-messaging plan.

So what can you do?

» Contact your carrier ASAP after receiving a spam. Acting promptly will help you reduce charges. They are more likely to waive a few charges versus a few dozen.

» Block the spam at the source. Since spam originates over the Internet via a SMSC (Short Message Service Center) or an e-mail/Internet gateway off shore, you can go to your cell online account and tweak your e-mail and/or messaging preferences. It's then possible to turn on a setting that blocks messages over the Internet.

» Get an alias. No need to block all messages. Some carriers such as AT&T and Verizon will let you replace your wireless number with an alias that you can share with friends. This would stymie the spammers' hacking attempts but allow trusted people to text you. Some carriers, such as Verizon allow you designate “;bad”; addresses from which you don't want to receive mail.

» Report your problems. You can file a complaint online at https://esupport.fcc.gov/ form1088/consumer.do.

» Register your cell number to block spam. Do this by registering your cell number to block telemarketers from sending any communications to your cell account, which you can do here: https://www.donotcall.gov/register/reg.aspx.

» Don't invite spammers. Avoid downloading free or inexpensive ring tones and games from third-party vendors. Doing so may put you at risk of spam or even identity theft.

  Note that the national carriers all have anti spam features and all allow users to set filter parameters for their personal accounts.

Some carriers (such as AT&T and Verizon) provide more flexibility when it comes to setting up your personal preferences, other less (i.e., Sprint and T-Mobile).

Rather than allowing customers to set up their own filters, Honolulu-based Mobi PCS, automates spam blocking.

According to Mobi's chief technology officer, Ed Kurzenski, he hasn't received any customer complaints with this system.

If any Mobi customers need to block a specific e-mail addresses or phone numbers, all they need to do is contact customer service and it will be done over the phone, he said.

If you're a customer with one of the national carriers I mentioned earlier, and you want to tweak your own filter, I'd Google a June 12, New York Times piece by David Pogue titled “;How to Block Cellphone Spam.”; It has a detailed description of how to activate the anti-spam features on every major carrier. He'll take you step by step through the process.

  Another option is to purchase third party software. For example, Trend Micro's Mobile Security is a comprehensive product that blocks viruses, worms, Trojans, and SMS text message spam.

It also has encryption and authentication to protect data integrity on lost or stolen devices.

It has a firewall to guard against hackers, intrusions, and denial-of-service attacks as well, and sells for about $20 online.