How
To Keep E-mail Hoaxes Out of Your Inbox
By:
©Tim Gilligan
a/k/a "Skipper"
You
get this email: "Starbucks refused free product to G.I.s
serving in Iraq ... "
Did
you know that almost every alarming e-mail like this one is a
hoax?
How
can you tell?
What
can you do about it?
In
particular, can you keep e-mail hoaxes out of your Inbox?
You
bet you can!
There
is usually abundant evidence to help you decide whether statements
in an e-mail are likely to be hoaxes.
Look
first for what we call internal evidence and compare it with any
available external evidence. (It's easier than it sounds.) If
the evidence proves the information to be false, use it to embarrass
the sender. He will soon enough stop sending those e-mail hoaxes
to your Inbox.
Internal
Evidence is found within the e-mail itself. You will find up to
five clues there.
First
clue: who sent the e-mail? Usually, it will be someone who routinely
sends you e-mails. So start by identifying the sender. If you
know him you can shame him.
Second
clue: this message has been forwarded many times. The Subject
line will usually start with: "Fw: Starbucks refused ...
" or some similar teaser. You may see several previous "Fw:
... " lines inside the text of the e-mail, as well.
Third
clue: the use of unusually large, colored, or mixed fonts, exhorting
you to some quick action. (The more frantic the fonts, the more
suspicious the message.)
Fourth
clue: has this same e-mail been sent to a long list of people?
Read the "To:" line; how many others are named? Don't
recognize many of them? Aha!
Fifth,
and surest, clue: the insistent call to forward this letter to
everyone you know. Right now!
External
Evidence is any evidence gathered apart from, or outside, the
actual document. To get to the truth, compare the internal evidence
with any external evidence you can find.
So
where do you find external evidence?
Once
you suspect a hoax, do a web search on the subject line. Quote
the whole line in the search box; if it's a known hoax you will
get plenty of hits. Your search engine will point you to several
"hoax-busting" websites that offer information about
e-mail hoaxes using those exact words.
If
your search engine comes up empty then try again, using some of
the key words instead.
You
can also search directly at any or, even better, all of these
sites:
http://www.scambusters.org/
http://www.snopes.com/
http://hoaxbusters.org/
With
very little practice you will be able to judge the internal evidence
almost at a glance and go straight to searching for external evidence
for positive proof.
Now
you know how to spot fake warnings.
But
how do you actually keep e-mail hoaxes out of your Inbox?
Just
send them right back, with a twist. Wait and see, it works!
Copy
every single scrap of information from a hoax-busting site, preferably
several sites if you have the time. Overwhelm the culprit with
proof that he acted rashly.
Do
that by pasting all the evidence you've gathered to the original
hoax e-mail, using the "Reply" function.
IMPORTANT:
you are obligated to credit the source for each quote. Besides,
a quote without attribution could make you appear untrustworthy,
yourself.
Refrain
from commenting; simply return his e-mail with the addition of
your thorough rebuttal from several verified sources. After a
comeuppance or two, your pal will stop forwarding unfounded messages,
at least to you.
This
works because nobody likes to look foolish, especially when leaving
such a public paper trail. Keep in mind that your friend is merely
a victim of the hoax. So here you have a chance to rid your friend
of his bad habit while achieving your goal: to keep e-mail hoaxes
out of your Inbox. All this, without a single reproving word.
Be
especially alert for virus hoaxes, urgent virus warning emails.
You know them: predictions of impending electronic doom due to
some evil sounding virus lurking inside your very own computer.
Many of these warnings will seem authentic.
Note,
though, that you are always urged to take some drastic action,
usually to delete this "virus", which usually turns
out to be a necessary file with an unfortunate name.
But
wait! Now you know better.
Right...
start by looking up the "virus" here:
http://us.mcafee.com/virusInfo/default.asp?id+hoaxes
Act
the savvy pro that you are.
You
now know how to keep e-mail hoaxes out of your Inbox.
About
the Author: Tim Gilligan a/k/a/ "Skipper" is
an experienced online entrepreneur working from his home office
on Ft. Myers Beach, Florida. The above article is one of the
many articles "Skipper" has written. He has also
just completed his very first e-book titled, "The
Dangers of Identity Theft and How To Protect yourself"
and if you would like to get more information on this subject,
please visit this page:
http://www.teejayenterprises.net/cgi-bin/arp3/arp3-t.pl?l=23&c=441 |
