posted
If you received an email from me that said 'Hi' followed by a link (which I hoped you didn't open) and my full name at the bottom, allow me to apologize.
It is a mystery to me how or where my password to my email account became compromised. I really don't do a lot of surfing and if I ever need to visit a site I am weary of, I use an alternate catch-all-spam email address.
My best guess is a new market I submitted a recent story too. I certainly hope that wasn't the place, and I don't think it would be wise to say which one it was.
So, sorry if you were a victim of my misfortune.
Posts: 3072 | Registered: Dec 2007
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posted
Sorry to hear that. In general, I don't follow a link in a strange e-mail unless (1) I know the guy sending it really well, and (2) there's some satisfactory explanation in the e-mail itself of what the link is.
My (usual) e-mail address, having been posted in a variety of places, sometimes gets swiped and used. I hope anybody who gets something apparently from me would exercise some good sense about it.
On the other hand...my computer seems full of strange things, nearly all of which I don't think I had anything to do with putting there. (My Microsoft Internet Explorer keeps coming up without warning, as well as always coming up first thing, with what used to be an ad for some security software called Trend Micro, but for the last year has been "page cannot be displayed." Haven't the slightest idea of how to get rid of it.)
...which wandering explanation leads to the point: I might be casually infecting someone without even knowing it.
Posts: 8809 | Registered: Aug 2005
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posted
I don't follow a bare unexplained link in an unexpected email from friends, because of just this problem. I reply first asking what it's about, precisely for this reason. It's quite a common problem.
Posts: 1459 | Registered: Dec 2010
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posted
Coulda been worse. They hacked my work e-mail once and sent out viagra and other "sexual aid" ads to people I'd worked with all over the world. That was fun.
Posts: 459 | Registered: Mar 2010
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I got phished once. I knew I had after several people emailed me back telling me so. The sad thing is that my mom emailed me back in all sincerity telling me that "the link looked interesting. thanks for sharing". I'm really glad it was an ad about how to make $$$$$ working from home instead of something far less appropriate.
Posts: 252 | Registered: Feb 2013
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