|
|
 |
|
|
Computer Support For Individuals And Small Business |
|
|
|
|
1/25/11 |
|
|
What To Do About Email Hoaxes |
|
|
So you are sitting at your computer checking your email and you come across an email from a friend that starts off with something like "WARNING!! NEW VIRUS FOUND!!
Microsoft doesn't know about this! Norton and McAfee are clueless! Your hard drive will be erased, your computer will explode, and your house will burn down!," etc. You are asked to take some action, such as delete a specific file or not open an email with a particular subject line, and then to pass it on to all your contacts. What do you do?
|
|
|
Language of this sort should immediately raise a red flag. This is a common type of hoax which has been circulating around the internet for years. The danger is not in opening the email, as it is usually quite innocuous in that sense, but in the action the reader takes afterward.
|
|
|
The whole premise is to create fear in the reader's mind and to intimidate him or her to take some action. Deleting a file can actually damage your operating system or affect other software. Sending the message on to others simply causes them undue stress and increases traffic on the already overcrowded internet highway.
|
|
|
Keep in mind there are thousands and thousands of computer professionals around the world constantly monitoring the internet for viruses, worms, Trojan horses, etc. There is also a very elaborate system in place for preventing malware from causing damage. All the major anti-virus software and other computer security companies, as well as companies such as Microsoft, are tied into that system. The likelihood that a casual user will find one of these, evaluate it, and send out warnings before the pros are aware of it is slim to none.
|
|
|
|
How do you recognize a hoax email? Here is an article on Seven Tell-Tale Signs For Recognizing Email Hoaxes. It also includes links to specific examples of actual email hoaxes.
|
|
|
Please do not propagate such a hoax by sending it on to your contacts. The idea that "it's better to send it out than to take a chance" just wastes peoples' time.
|
|
|
|
What do you do? Just delete the email! |
|