Email Security Part II

Everyone knows that you shouldn't open attachments from people you don't know. Well listen up, Geekettes: don't open attachments from people you do know! Unless you absolutely know your correspondent sent it to you, you are expecting it, and it is in an email that looks like it was actually written by the correspondent, don't open it.

In part one we talked about how chain emails are a real supermarket for spammers, giving them lists of actual email addresses, they also give them lists of people who know the people in the list. Get it, Aunt Emma sends you an email of cute little puppies peeing on a flower, along with 36 other people who also enjoy peeing puppies. A spammer gets a copy. Know your email and Aunt Emma's email and all of a sudden you get this:

"Dear Geekette,

I writed you today to tell you about a great picture I saw of buetiful girl undressed. Here it is, I think you will enjoyed this much and that it will make your manhood really raising,

Aunt Emma"

Now whats wrong with this email? Let me count the ways:

1. Aunt Emma is a PhD in English Literature.
2. Aunt Emma is generally opposed to undressed girls.
3. Aunt Emma is not normally know for discussions of raising manhood.

So what do you do? You say "naked women, whippie" click the attachment and ... your computer is now sending porn from Russia with love. You have been had. You might get a picture of buetifl girl undressed, the spammer gets your computer. Soon the Sheriff is at the door to seize your computer and you are wondering how to tell your wife about it all. Don't open attachments in emails. And don't think that a virus program will protect you. It will not. Nope, half the time a virus is just too new. But more about that in a later post. For now, just repeat after me:
Don't open attachments in emails.

Have you got that?