Using "BCC" When
You Forward an Email
Late one evening, while online, I received an IM (Internet
message) from a gentleman who said he knew me through mutual pals online.
We chatted for an hour or so before deciding to keep in touch, as we had
so many things in common.
I eventually, after a week or so of knowing him, trusted him with my name
(first name) and phone number.
***
He told me that he spotted my screen name on a "Forward"
that one of my friends had sent to some one else. My screen name is what
attracted him. He then used the screen name of others on the list of
forwards to acquaint himself with me and various others from our clique of
friends. He also used the Member Directory (at AOL) to look up info about
others on the list of forwards, so as not to look suspicious.
He said he felt it was the only way he would have the chance to get to
know me, and the main attraction to me was "My Screen name" because he
thought it was "sexy." I was upset, needless to say, as I had trusted this
man with my personal info, such as phone number and name.
He also knew where I lived (thanks to the phone bill), and I was now his
prey.
***
People, let me tell you something, this man had been
stalking me for weeks and I had no idea. I walked, ate, slept and breathed
in constant fear until he was finally arrested for stalking-
Not for stalking me.
Nope.
For stalking another woman who lived in Kendall, Florida.
I wanted to share this with you all. And yes, it is all true. Friends,
when you forward things and you leave your friends' names out in plain
view like that, you are putting them and yourself in what could be grave
danger. I hope I have gotten this message across.
I have not even begun to mention his assault charges (rape, using deadly
force) the detectives from Broward County and Kendall, FL uncovered on him
while investigating his prior history.
People, please: be safe, be careful and use blind carbon copy (Bcc). This
is NOT a joke and not a hoax.
Please Remember:
It is Important to remove all personal email when forwarding items from
this, or any other list to individuals or other discussion groups (unless
the message asks readers to contact them via email or phone).
Remember, a lot of us have a great deal of information in our sigs
(signature files) that appear at the bottom of many of our messages.
In addition, the blind carbon copy (Bcc) option makes the individuals you
send email to unseen by all other recipients.
E-mailers should also cut out email addresses from forwards when
forwarding the message on. I know I have received unsolicited emails from
individuals who have gotten my address via a forwarded message from this
group. Although more annoying than serious, it could have been worse.
IT'S TRUE - IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR FRIENDS, CHANGE HOW YOU SEND E-MAIL.
THIS IS A TRUE CONCERN OF MANY PEOPLE.
PAY ATTENTION, READ TO THE END.
Many times friends on e-mail ask me about me using the Bcc address on
e-mails and commenting about my e-mails not having long lists of other
e-mail addresses where the e-mail had been sent prior to me receiving it.
Please read all of this and you will understand why I do things the way I
do. Also this is not a fake or ridiculous idea from a crank.
Do you wonder why you get viruses or junk mail? Do you hate it?
Every time you forward an e-mail there is information left over from the
people that got the message before you - namely their e-mail addresses. As
the messages get forwarded along, the list of addresses builds, and
builds, and builds, and all it takes is for some poor sap to get a virus,
and his computer can send that virus to every e-mail address that has come
across his computer.
Or, someone can take all of those addresses and sell them or send junk
mail to them in the hopes that you will go to the site and he will make
five cents.
That's right, all of that inconvenience over a nickel.
How do you stop it?
Well, there are two easy steps:
1) When you forward an email, DELETE all of the other addresses that
appear in the body of the message.
That's right, delete them. Highlight them; then delete them, backspace
them, whatever it is you know how to do. It only takes a second.
2) Whenever you send an e-mail, don't use the "To:" or "Cc:" columns for
adding email addresses. Use the "Bcc:" or "blind carbon copy" column for
sending the message. This way the people that you send to only see their
own email address.
If you don't see your "Bcc:" option, click on where it says "To:" and your
address list will appear. Highlight the address and click "Bcc:". When you
"select recipients" you can put the recipients in the "Bcc" box instead of
the "To" box.
And that's it - it's that easy
This should be forwarded (MINUS my email address!) to everyone on your
e-mail list who does not use "Bcc." And this should also confirm why you
>should "clean-up" your e-mails.
Knowledge comes, but Wisdom lingers
About the above forwarded email....
This message is propagating via email. It advises users to
utilize the Blind Carbon Copy (BCC) option when forwarding emails so that
personal information is hidden from other possible email recipients.
It further relates the experience of one woman who was stalked by a
stranger for weeks; the culprit was apparently attracted by the woman's
screen name which appeared in the list of email addresses attached to a
forwarded email. The hoax also claims that the stalker was arrested for
stalking another woman in Florida, and was later found to be guilty of
other serious crimes.
Investigation, however, reveals that no such case has ever transpired. The
Florida Police Department could not produce the said record.
Although using the BCC option has its advantages, and instances of
stalking do occur because of Internet interaction, the email cites an
experience that is not supported by official records and thus, cannot be
verified to be true.
Trend Micro requests that email users not forward this email, which is a
hoax.
Note from Heather: The reason that someone made up
a forwarded email to get the point across about using BCC is because
people who send on forwards tend to believe anything they read in a
forwarded email, so the author figured that you would believe this too.
Point being, please don't be gullible and send forwarded emails to all of
your friends and family simply because the email tells you to. (And please
do not send them to me, thanks.)
Spells
Free Spells
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