Articles in Category: Email
Email – the most used, most long lived communications medium offered by networks of interconnected computers.
How Do I Keep Outlook.com from Locking Me Out When I Travel?
When your email is suddenly accessed from a new location, it could mean someone other than you is trying to log in. Email providers like Outlook.com watch for this.
Searching for a Technical Support Support Phone Number? Avoid This Huge Trap
There is no support phone number for major free services. So what’s up with the phone numbers in search results?
“From” Spoofing: How Spammers Send Email that Looks Like It Came from You
“From” spoofing is how spammers send email that looks like it comes from you that you had nothing at all to do with. I’ll look at how it’s done.
Why Does Email I Send Fail But a Reply Works?
When email you send bounces, that can mean many things. If a reply to that same person works, there’s almost certainly a problem with the email address you’re sending to.
Does Emptying Trash in Email Keep Others from Seeing My Deleted Email?
Most of us aren’t able to access emails we’ve deleted, but that doesn’t mean someone at the email provider can’t.
How Do I Find the IP Address of an Email’s Sender?
Determining the IP address of an email sender is difficult at best, and usually impossible. Sometimes you get lucky.
How Do I Tell If My Email Has Been Hacked?
It can be surprisingly hard to tell if an email account has been hacked, especially when hackers cover their tracks. I’ll show you a couple of possible signs.
Am I Wasting My Time Reporting Scam and Spam Emails?
Reporting spam in your email program with the spam button is critical. Reporting it by forwarding it somewhere isn’t going to do any good.
Why Do I See Lots of Failed Login Attempts on My Account?
I’ll show you how to look at your Outlook.com recent activity and review why it might be full of failed login attempts.
If I Do These Things, Will I Be Anonymous?
Anonymity on the internet is really, really hard. Some of the practices we might use to stay anonymous could still be leaking identifiable, traceable information.
How to Get Email with Attachments Delivered
Emailing attachments — particularly large files — is getting more and more difficult as ISPs limit size and scan for malware.
Why Are Pictures Not Showing in Email?
There are many reasons pictures don’t show up in email. I’ll review the complex world that is email, and some of the things that can go wrong.
Why Does Legitimate Email from PayPal Instruct Me to Click a Link?
The rule is, never click on links unless you are 100% certain that they are from who you think they are. The question is, how can you be certain?
What Is It About Attachments?
Email attachments are useful, ubiquitous, and convenient. They’re also abused, dangerous, and responsible for infections and data breaches.
Why Are There Vertical Bars on the Left of Some Emails I Send?
When replying to email, many programs include the original text with some indication that it is the original. We’ll look at configuring that.
Why Does Thunderbird Think this Message Might Be a Scam?
Occasionally, security software examines links in email and alerts you if something is suspicious. Frequently, it’s totally benign.
Why Must I Re-enter my Email to Unsubscribe?
Occasionally, you’re asked to enter the email address you want to unsubscribe. With today’s technology, there’s no excuse for that.
Dealing with Fake “Ask Leo”
Someone’s sending spam that looks like an Ask Leo! recommendation. It’s not, and it gives us clues to keep in mind when evaluating any email message.
Can I Tell If Email I Sent Has Been Read by the Recipient?
While there are settings and services that claim to know if an email has been opened, they are notoriously unreliable and pointless.
What Does “Relaying Denied” Mean?
“Relaying denied” is an error you may receive in a bounce reply to an email message you sent. I’ll look at what relaying is, and why it might be denied.
Out-of-Office Replies are Evil
Out-of-office replies can ricochet through email lists like spam and even put you in harm’s way. Are they evil?
How Do I Unsubscribe from All These Unwanted Emails?
There are emails from which you should certainly unsubscribe when you no longer want them. However, there are emails that you absolutely should never unsubscribe from. I’ll review the differences.
How Do I Change the Default Mail Program in Windows?
The default mail program is used to send email at the request of other programs on your computer or links on web page. If you use a web interface, however, things get tricky.
What are the Pros and Cons of Web-based Email Over Desktop Email?
Web-based and downloaded email both have significant advantages and disadvantages. Which is right for you depends on many things.
Are Free Email Services Worth It?
Free email services and accounts are convenient and ubiquitous, and can be used safely, if and only if you take responsibility for that safety.
Gmail’s Confidential Mode Isn’t
Gmail offers a “confidential mode”. It is and it isn’t; learn how it works before you use it.
What’s the Difference Between Hotmail.com, Msn.com, Live.com and Now Outlook.com?
Like many Microsoft products, Hotmail’s name has changed a time or two and caused a great deal of confusion. I’ll try to make sense of it all.
How to (Accidentally) Give Someone Else Your PayPal Account
Entering your email address incorrectly might just be a typo, but it can have surprising ramifications.
Why I (Still) Don’t Like Challenge/Response Spam Blockers
An error caused my newsletter to come “From” the wrong address. Flooded with challenge/response mails, I wonder: what other messages are you missing?
Why Does My IP Address Have a Bad Reputation? And What Do I Do?
Email reputation for your home IP address probably doesn’t matter, and having it characterized as “poor” might even be a good thing.
What’s a Relay Server?
Relay servers pass email messages along from one email server to another. I’ll review why they exist, and why they might matter.
How Can I Automatically Reply to Spammers To Tell Them to Stop?
It’s tempting to want to reply to spam, telling the sender to stop it (or worse). Not only is that ineffective, it often makes things worse.
Will a Hacked Website Leak My Email Address?
Your password protects your account from unauthorized access, but it doesn’t protect your email address from exposure.
Why Does My Email Sometimes Show Up with Funny Characters Like “=0D” In It?
Email can use complex methods to encode special (or even not-so-special) characters. Occasionally, those methods accidentally become visible.
How Long Does Email Delivery Take?
Email is typically very fast, but there are several reasons it can be legitimately delayed for hours, or perhaps even days.
How Do I Back Up My Outlook.com Email?
Outlook.com accounts are hacked into and lost every day. I’ll review a couple of techniques that ensure you won’t lose email or contacts if it happens to you.
How Do I Get an Email Address for Life?
Want an email address that won’t have to change for a long time? There’s really only one approach that’s completely in your control.
Enabling Google Two-Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication is a powerful way to protect your account. We’ll enable two-factor and take an additional, critical, step to secure it.
What’s This Confirmation Request I Got When I Emailed Someone?
Challenge/Response is a spam-fighting technique that forces you to prove you’re human before your message will be delivered. It’s controversial, to say the least.
What’s the Difference Between Spam and Junk Mail?
“Spam” and “junk” mean the same thing when it comes to email. There’s a lot of confusion about how they, your email service, and your email program all interact.
Can I Still Get a Hotmail Email Address?
Surprisingly, you can still create a hotmail.com email address. I’ll show you how.
My ISP Went Under; How Do I Recover My Email and Email Address?
If your ISP goes out of business, typically you can no longer access data kept on their equipment. Prevention is really the only cure.
How Do I Encrypt Email?
It’s surprisingly difficult to encrypt email. We’ll look at a practical solution that anyone can use, as well as the way things “should” work.
What Happens When I Mark Something as Spam?
Marking spam as spam is an important tool in the war against it, but exactly what happens when you do so is clouded in mystery.
How Do I Get my Name, Title and Other Information to Show at the Bottom of Every Message I Send?
Signatures are a great way to make composing email easier by including standard information at the bottom. I’ll show you where the settings are in three popular email interfaces.
The Wrong Way to Change Your Email Address
Simply emailing your entire contact list with a notice that you’ve changed your email address is NOT the way to change your email address.
4 Alternatives for Windows Live Mail and Outlook.com
Outlook.com is dropping support for Windows Live Mail 2012. I’ll look at what that really means, and outline some options Microsoft failed to mention.
Why Am I Getting a “Delivery Status Notification (Delay)” on an Email I Sent?
Delays happen for many reasons; it’s the nature of the email infrastructure. If you get a “Delivery Status Notification (Delay)”, your options are limited.
Why am I getting email from someone with the wrong email address?
Many people receive spam that looks like it comes from someone they know, but is not from that person’s email address. I’ll take a look at what’s going on and what you need to pay attention to.
Should I Worry If Email I Send Is Marked as Spam?
If someone threatens to mark your email as spam, don’t worry about it. Here’s why.
