A web hosting firm claims to have developed spam filtering technology that can weed out MP3 attachments.

The announcement follows a sharp hike in the volume of MP3 spam that typically features Dalek-like voices touting pump-and-dump scams and other get-rich-quick schemes. Such spam is estimated to account for 10 per cent of all email traffic.

Strato, Europe's second largest web host, has developed a modular spam filtering system in partnership with Humboldt University and the Max-Planck Institute that could exterminate MP3 spam.

The system scans files for criteria common to all spam message formats, including plain text, picture and PDF spam. It can detect the patterns in file formats including GIF graphics, PDF or MP3 files, the firm claimed.

"We expect video spam within the next three to six months and are ready to tackle it," said Strato chief technology officer René Wienholtz.