Are we foolish if we don't have fake e-mail addresses. What all can someone do? Can they mess up our computers? Should we protect ourselves? wondering Tren

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

Answers

I always use my real email address. I've only had one problem and that was partly my fault because my virus definitions weren't up to date.

It's a good idea to have an anti-virus program on your computer and to keep it up to date. Don't open any files sent to you by people you don't know. Especially watch out for files that say .vbs at the end, they are viruses. You may want to have a firewall too, that will keep other people from using the internet to get into your computer. Jim posted a website a while back that had a lot of good information about firewalls. It told how to check your computer to see if it already has a firewall and how to test how good it is at blocking stuff.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

tren...............I have had horrendous spaming with virus at one time and my Norton's antivirus caught them all. I don't use a fake address because I want the good people to be able to get ahold of me and I know if I stay wise and don't open attachments from people I don't know I will be o.k. (I NEVER open attachments without downloading them onto a floppy disk and scanning them for virus first not matter if they are from my very best friend. When all my friends got a virus last time I was the only one that didn't get it) You are never involved in the stuff that makes enemies so I really don't see where you would have anything to worry about. If you don't have a anti-virus program, I would get one. You can get a virus from anyone who forwards stuff to you. A firewall is another security measure.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

Here's a link to that thread on firewalls - scroll down a few posts and you'll see the links I provided:

Get a firewall

BTW, good answers all around. It's up to each person to decide their level of comfort when giving out information (such as a real name and email address or even to post at all) on the web. I've been using my real name and email address in forums such as this one for the entire five years I've been online and it hasn't done me wrong yet. But then I've never been hacked by anyone either, so my view on it is probably skewed on the matter. If I were to be hacked then I might have a different view on the subject. It's a hard call to make, either way...

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

I started using a fake e-mail and handle maybe three years ago when someone who didn't like my thoughts on y2k bombarded my e-mail with so many phony messages he almost shut down my local ISP. Now I use it to provide continuity among the various boards I visit. If someone needs to get hold of me, all they have to do is say so and I'll contact them.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

This is a real address, but not my primary one. Someone can write me or even send spam. If it ever gets bad (which it hasn't) I can junk this e-mail and set-up another free one somewhere else. My hotmail account got junk all the time before so I let it lapse. I never download from those I don't know and have told friends not to send me downloadable cutesie joke files.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

Oh, I should have said that, like Annie, this address I use for the forums is not my primary address.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

I switched over to Yahoo for the forums after I started getting lots of "get rich quick" things after posting on a "work at home" thread. I prefer my msn account, and use it for people I know and write back and forth with. It's so much harder to check Yahoo, but I think it saves all that junk from comming in the main mail. I have 2 other ones out there I have to check also.

I update my virus program all the time, AVG, and have a firewall too. They are easy to do. Just make sure on your "real" addy that Outlook Express is configured to have to double click to open any mail. That way if you don't know them or see .vbs or .exe after something, you can click once, highlight it, and delete it.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

diane, How do you scan the floppy? Is it hard todo?

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

Maybe we're living dangerously, but we use our only addy for almost everything. Never had much spam, and nothing malicious. We use a Macintosh, so may not be so vulnerable to most viruses. I must admit that I occasionally use a false name and e-mail on other forums if I want to take a very contrary standpoint or say something that might be deemed provocative.

-- Anonymous, June 25, 2001

Thanks everybody for all the insights and advice. Appreciate you all! TRen

-- Anonymous, June 27, 2001

Dee, with the norton's you can bring up the menu and it will show all your drives, my A drive is my floppy and I select that and then push "scan now". It will scan everything on the floppy and tell you how many files are there and if any virus is present. Do you have Norton's? I don't know about the other ones.

-- Anonymous, June 27, 2001