Send me an email please. Story but no pix.

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Bill Martino

Bill Martino

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Mar 5, 1999
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Here's the story. I get more unwanted junk mail ranging from porno to credit cards scams that I don't want. There are so many it is futile to try to block them so I just delete them. But, yesterday afternoon I must have received 25 from the same outfit wanting me to "subscribe for $1.95" so I replied with one only email saying "no."

An hour or so later I started getting email from myself and noticed a bunch of guys on file in my filing cabinet were copied on the mail. I think it was an ad saying "increase your penis length 1 to 5 inches."

Questions: How can somebody send email from my email address? How was he able to do this and access my filing cabinet. As most know I'm with AOL. Did anybody get this mail besides me?
I've heard of firewall protection but don't know anything about it. Do I need it? Looks like I do so what do I do?

I changed my password after the incident. Result: No more mail from myself but an empty mailbox this AM rather than the usual 50 or 60 messages I get on a daily basis. Is somebody intercepting my mail?

So, send an email if you can find the time. I want to see if it gets thru to me. If you send the mail and say so on the forum I'll know it was sent. If I don't get it then I'm going to have to do something fast.

Thanks for any help.
 
Hi Uncle Bill,
I sent you an email. I didn't hack your account, but I kinda simulated what somebody might have done. But, after rereading and thinking it over, I guess you were hacked.

Bob
 
Sent.

Hey guys, no more UBDOTD's posted til this gets fixed. Anyone knowlegeable pleasecall and help Uncle!
 
I sent this link to Uncle Bill in an email. There's a great freeware firewall program called zonealarm. You can get it at www.zonelabs.com it's very highly rated by zdnet, and other online magazines.

Bob
 
Uncle,

There are a few things you should be running on your machine:

1. A good anti-virus program which you keep up to date by downloading new definitions regularly. This is easy to do.

2. Download the free version of ZoneAlarm (a very easy to use software firewall) here: http://www.zonelabs.com/

3. Download the free version of Spam Buster here:

http://www.contactplus.com/products/spam/spam.htm

Before you download Spam Buster, check to see if it works with proprietary email systems like AOL, as it may not. But the first two options are essential, AOL or not. Spam Buster lets you prescreen email and designate certain addresses as junk so you never have to open mail from them.

All the programs are intuitive.

Oh, one other thing. DO NOT answer/reply to commercial email that you are not interested in. Just delete it and add the address to your kill file if you want. On AOL you can set up mail preferences to not receive email from addresses you designate.
And, of course, do not open attachments from sources you don't know. (Even known ones are not without problems sometimes.)

Let me know if I can be of more help. Unfortunately my technical skills with a computer are only marginal.

Blues

 
Thanks all for email and help.

I just installed the McAfee firewall protection program and it's working. Also updated my McAfee Virus scan and ran a total scan of everything -- no viruses found.

I think everything is under control but I'll have to say these scam and spam artists are a real pain. I wish they would find something better to do with their lives.

Thanks again. All help greatly appreciated.
 
One question I've been asking myself is, why would anyone want to do something like that??? I mean, what does it get them other than the thrill of inconvenencing somebody for about 1/2 of one hour???

Bob
 
:
I understand when you e-mail the bastids back that they will grab your addy and sell it to several other places since you just confirmed you addy by e-mailing them.
The other reasons they use someone elses addy is to keep from being tracked down easily.
I have turned some of the scam artists into abuse@ the particular address they used such as hotmail and have gotten answers back from the places I sent it too saying that the mail didn't originate from thier outfit.
And that they were only hiding behind the address that they listed.

The moral of the story is to Never answer one of their e-mails!!!!

Looks like you got it straightened out Bro so I won't send you a mail unless you still need it.
 
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