email scam puzzle...computer geek opinions?

[pwd72s]

I guess we all know of the financial services scam...the email saying they are one bank or another, click on the link to confirm your data....
I usually delete these as soon as they come in. But this time I decided to print the scam mail, as a way to explain it to an anti computer snail mail friend.
In light gray print, bottom of the page, some text appeared that was not shown on screen. It reads:
"I am it's for you. Atilla the Hun Snowboarding Dale Earnhardt Super Bowl do you work? But we do have Schwartzenegger William How's your? Internet you are stupid Charlie's Angels TV Larry Prom Dresses is 1813 Scooters Ramadan Can you tell me? in 1856 and 2007 come over to Community service We'd like to see"

WTF? This reads like a Tabs post back in the days before I discovered the ignore list feature.

So, computer guys...why did this drivel show on a print-out and not on screen? Don't think I'll ask for the meaning of any of the 'message'.

[emcon5]

It is in the message, but the font color is set to the same as the background color.

It is there to try and fool anti-spam software.

Tom

[widebody911]

This random text is placed there to defeat Bayesian filters. These filters work by assigning a 'spam score' to each word in the email, and coming up with a probability of spam-ness. For example, the word 'viagra' would have a much higher spam quotient than 'synchronizer'.

http://www.paulgraham.com/spam.html

[pwd72s]

Thanks Tom. I shoulda known it would be you to have the answer.

[RickM]

Many spam emails are actually images, not text. This is to defeat the text filtering that is used by ISPs. Lack of text is another condition that is likely filtered. This may be the situation with this email.