Got an E Mail tonight which said :Sender: Syed Umer. Subject: This company is giving out ipods. I havent clicked on the E Mail to read it because I dont know who its from.Can anyone tell me ? I will cancel it if its dodgy. Advice please.:help:

It's what's known as spam. Delete it :nod:

yes, deffo spam

It's what's known as spam. Delete it :nod:
Thanks ally68 & Biggan. I very much appreciate your advice.How do I know in future what is Spam,apart from me not recognising the E Mail senders name?

Anything which seems too good to be true, very probably is :) .

They are normally offering something for free or other offers too good to be true. If in doubt, always delete.

They are normally offering something for free or other offers too good to be true. If in doubt, always delete.

Thanks ally68, so its free offers or other offers in the title ? Im an older computer user and not used to Spam.This is the first one Ive had,dont know where they got my E Mail address from though.Thanks again.:thumbsup:

Thanks ally68, so its free offers or other offers in the title ? Im an older computer user and not used to Spam.This is the first one Ive had,dont know where they got my E Mail address from though.Thanks again.:thumbsup:
What usually happens is that you've posted your email address on the web somewhere. There are computer programs out there designed specifically to hoover up people's email addresses. I try to get around it to a certain extent by having a few email accounts: one for work-related stuff, which I would never use on the web, and a Yahoo and Hotmail account, which I (sometimes, if absolutely necessary) do post.

Ah the free ipod!......That old chestnut! SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM

You'll be alright to open any emails you receive that you're not sure of - just NEVER click on any link or open an attachment in an email if you're not sure who it's from.
Problem is that your email address is now on a spam list somewhere. Expect that mail to be the first of many. There's little you can do about.
The anti-spam protection I have in place involves a separate machine and I'm not up on current products that may suit Patricia (who I'm assuming has a single PC/mail client setup) - anyone any suggestions of good anti-spam software for her?

a lot of spam normally has peoples names in the sender / subject lines.....normally you dont know who they are.....delete

they also have loads of gibberish in the sender / subject lines.......delete


NEVER send one to the take me off your list option............cos then they know its an active email and sell it on to other spammers


ive had a funny one lately, titled peepee expander

i seem to mainly get penis expander, free drugs and herbal drugs spam???????? lol
they know me so well lol

What makes me laugh is that my current's employer's system lets in all the "penile enhancement" and "buy your watches here" emails. Yet if I send something to/from home that I've been working on (and we're only talking Excel/Word docs here) they get blocked!

What makes me laugh is that my current's employer's system lets in all the "penile enhancement" and "buy your watches here" emails. Yet if I send something to/from home that I've been working on (and we're only talking Excel/Word docs here) they get blocked!
twatty security settings

blocking all dodgy attachments......i hate that

i virus scan all those types anyway.....seems silly to block em all full stop tbh

Ah and the best bit is I get an email letting me know that they've been blocked and a hyperlink to follow to request their release. Problem is that the hyperlink goes to an inaccessible location and no one knows who to contact/is responsible for the system!
They call themselves an IT company.
No wonder I'm leaving.

Ah and the best bit is I get an email letting me know that they've been blocked and a hyperlink to follow to request their release. Problem is that the hyperlink goes to an inaccessible location and no one knows who to contact/is responsible for the system!
They call themselves an IT company.
No wonder I'm leaving.

HAHA sounds like similer cowboys to my place :P

Ive learnt a lot from this thread,namely not to open anything suspicious.Id rather fall out with a relative,than answer a Spam E Mail.What happens if you do open a Spam E Mail by mistake though ? Do you just not click on their link ?

mostly nothing happens

most are harmless and are just info
that you can click to go to their website

some can be malware tho and have viruses, spyware etc so beware

You'll be alright to open any emails you receive that you're not sure of - just NEVER click on any link or open an attachment in an email if you're not sure who it's from.
Problem is that your email address is now on a spam list somewhere. Expect that mail to be the first of many. There's little you can do about.
The anti-spam protection I have in place involves a separate machine and I'm not up on current products that may suit Patricia (who I'm assuming has a single PC/mail client setup) - anyone any suggestions of good anti-spam software for her?

What can you do once you're on these lists, been getting the penis enlargement and drugs ones for a couple of months now - about 20 a day... driving me mad but can't just change my email as it's the one with my webspace :(

What can you do once you're on these lists, been getting the penis enlargement and drugs ones for a couple of months now - about 20 a day... driving me mad but can't just change my email as it's the one with my webspace :(

I don't follow? I've got loads of email addresses that I use for various things, some for throw away things like signing up for free stuff then not using them again as they get spammed and some for none critical stuff.

I've also got ones with my domain and what I tend to do is use a dufferent one for every different form so I know which one has leaked to a spam list. I can then either block that address and\or have a word with the relevant people.

I also use Mozilla Thunderbird which I find has a pretty good jumk\spam filter which is easy to use. Sometimes it gets a bit carried away but for the price, worth a look.

If you are unsure of any e-mail do this

1) right click on it
2) go to properties - details - message source
3) You can read it without opening it so no chance of a virus.

Most spam is easy to see from the title but this allows you to see the ones that may be real with no risk.

Unless anyone knows better

I don't follow? I've got loads of email addresses that I use for various things, some for throw away things like signing up for free stuff then not using them again as they get spammed and some for none critical stuff.

I just meant that it's not just some hotmail one that I can ignore & get a new one. And all the emails are to the same one, though it's a catch all email account, anything @my domain comes into the same inbox.

I just meant that it's not just some hotmail one that I can ignore & get a new one. And all the emails are to the same one, though it's a catch all email account, anything @my domain comes into the same inbox.

Same as one of mine then. I just have a catch all box and set Thunderbird to filter them as they come in for different folders depnding on what the pre @ bit is. That way when say addressone@domain.com gets on a spam list I can just go and change it to addresstwo@domain.com and set Thunderbird to send mails sent to addressone@domain.com to the junk folder.

Doesn't happen too often though, Thunderbird does a lot of the junk filtering for me, even on the addresses I use for newsgroups. I only realised how much spam I get after using OE for a temporary spell and I got loads of spam in the Inbox.