E-Mail and Internet Safety

If you have received a delivery error or virus notification for a message you did not send, the message was probably created as the result of a virus on someone else's computer. Some viruses "spoof" (change) the "From" address on e-mails so that they appear to come from someone else. What often happens is that someone's computer has a virus and they happened to have your e-mail address (or the address of a listserv you belong to) on the computer. It is extremely difficult to trace messages of this nature to identify the sender.

Unless you receive a delivery error message for a message you personally sent, it can be ignored. If you have any reason to believe your computer has a virus, then we suggest updating your virus software and scanning the computer (see Virus Information). Otherwise, you can simply just delete these messages.

Questionable Attachments and Links

NEVER open an attachment unless you know what it is and who sent it. If you have any doubts, contact the sender by telephone or separate e-mail to ask if they sent it. It would be better to delete a legitimate message and have to have it sent again, than to open a malicious attachment and suffer the consequences of having your computer infected with a virus.

Likewise, NEVER click on images or links to Web sites if you are suspicious of them for any reason. This includes links in e-mail messages and links on Web pages. Some links that may look harmless are designed to redirect you to a site with undesirable content (such as pornography) or to a site that will transmit a virus to your computer (or both). Using a bit of caution while reading e-mail and browsing the Internet can be quite helpful in avoiding virus problems.

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