Private email addresses

J Dan Brown · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 3:54 am Post subject: Private email addresses

Music wasn't a part of me sent me a private message asking for my email address. I thought it was available in my profile, and then I thought I sent it as a reply to his private message. Evidently I don't understand how all of that works. I don't mind private emails from any of you, as long as you please refrain from those "pass along/ good luck" type messages. For one thing, I don't believe in luck or "breaking the chain." I really only value emails that are authored by the sender and that are sent to me pesonally as a person. This may be hard-headed, but this is how I feel. So, I welcome personal emails from any of you, and at the same time have no secrets. Very Happy

*Edited by PunkStar

Blessed, and forever lifted up, Dan

PunkStar · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 5:29 pm Post subject:

There isn't anything in the rules about this. But you really don't want to post your email address publically. Spammers have programs that search the web for addresses and sell them, and you're email address will never see the end of it until you close it and open a new one.

But your address is in your profile and people can get it from there. You can even just mouse over the email button under your post and it will pop up. But publicly posting it is a really bad idea.

George E · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 6:38 pm Post subject:

But publicly posting it is a really bad idea.

No argument there. But there are ways to make oneself reachable with reasonable safety.

First, never, ever, ever post your "real" (ie. POP address) in public. That's the one (or one's) you get from your Internet Service Provider. Save them for only friends and family, and really important stuff like your bank account. Instead, get a disposable e-mail address from Hotmail or Yahoo. They are a dime a dozen with 10¢ change. If someone hacks or cracks one of those, it's no big deal.

Second, if you're going to post your e-mail address, you can make it phish-resistant if you type it as NAME (AT) DOMAIN.COM. A spambot wouldn't catch that as an e-mail address, but a human could re-type in, substituting an @ for (AT).

While my advice will make an unsafe practice a little bit less unsafe, that doesn't make it totally safe. Punkstar is still correct that posting it at all, even with safeguards, is a bad idea.

J Dan Brown · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 7:54 pm Post subject:

Thanks, guys! I really lack much knowledge on this kind of thing. I 've been on the Internet many years and suppose I have been very blessed by not really having much unwanted advertising or other emails to occur. A friend set me up with some good blockers and I mark things as safe or junk and then some other friends look out for me. Thank you guys from not letting me do anything stupid. Now that "Music Wasn't Part of Me" has it, I feel better. I respect him and be blessed to cporrespond. After that I can only pray for the best! I must admit I know little about address mining and selling, and about how listing active email addresses could possibly have monetary worth.
Blessed, but very basic and "cowpasture" like in PC knowledge, Barefoot Lt. Dan Laughing

PunkStar · Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 10:53 pm Post subject:

Thanks for sharing the tips George. Definately right on the money on all counts.

J Dan Brown · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 3:52 am Post subject:

Again, thanks guys! I am so computer illiterate. I seem to get aggravated
so much more by forwarded "feel good" and "if you believe this, send it on" emails from a couple of ladies from my church, and a couple of uncles, than by commercial sales type. But are you telling me that most all of these feelies are crafty address miners taking advantage of their innocence, my uncles with "Patriotism" and the few ladies at my church with "Spiritual" matters, one even as her Mother is dying? So are these one type just a preview of the sales offers to come? If so, I need to explain all this to them, as I am sure they have no idea. I know I had never thought of how one could be tricked by emails from friends and family, the originators with false intentions.
Blessed, but living in the pasture of innocence, Dan

PunkStar · Posted: Wed Jan 30, 2008 7:28 pm Post subject:

Ah, chain letters. No, those are something else completely separate. They are just annoying pieces of text sharing some free information that seek to get told to as many people as possible. They are usually harmless with not other motive. But still, best policy is just to delete and forget.

The most infuriating ones are the ones that play on your deepest beliefs to move to you action and can cause a minor spiritual crisis. They are manipulative drivel and should be ignored completely. One example I got was passed on by a Christian friend saying there was some play in America that depicts our Lord and his disciples as homosexuals. And the email wants all Christians to take action immediately by adding your name to the bottom of the email and sending it one. Whoever is the 500th name should send the email to some fake email address as a petition. There are plenty of good reasons to assume this is fake. If it were true, you'd think we'd hear about this on the news, I'm pretty sure this would make the international media. I checked the send to email address (with a blank email), it was sent back to me with an error (the address doesn't exist). And typing a few keywords into google shows this email is a hoax. So I sent back my results to my friend and she recognized her error. A couple of months later I got the email again. I simply sighed disappointedly and deleted the email. So if you get an email with something like "Corpus Christi", delete and don't worry.

I mentioned that story because unfortunately, people have a tendency simply to follow their own first reaction and not stop to think about what the results will be. When people get a chain letter they agree with, they just send it on because they think others will get value from it. But they haven't thought about the other side of it, that plenty of people find them annoying and could well be passing on false information. People though have good intentions and I respect that at least they are trying to make the world a better place.

As for your course of action. Chain letters are generally not a scam, just annoying. I wouldn't bother telling them everything I just wrote. Just politely ask that if they send a chain letter, please ensure that it doesn't get sent to you. People tend to just send the email to everyone in their address book in their email. Just ask that you might be removed from the email next time. Obviously, politeness is the key.

Hope this helps. And don't worry about feeling computer illiterate, I've been doing this far too long. Very Happy