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E-mail Hoaxes and Chain Letters

Most of us have received chain letters, hoaxes, or urban legends.  None of these are damaging to your computer (like a virus).  But, they are annoying, sometimes disturbing, and usually inaccurate.

If you receive a hoax, chain letter, or an urban legend – DON’T PASS IT ON to your friends or family!  It will junk up their inbox, annoy them, or, possibly alarm them unnecessarily.  If you suspect an email may be a hoax, investigate before you pass it on to others.

An easy way to research a possible hoax is to go to Google or Yahoo and type in a description of the message you believe may be a hoax.  Read through the results to decide if it may be a hoax.  You could also visit the website of Hoax Busters -- http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org  

Here are some examples of hoaxes:

• You will receive a case of M&Ms for forwarding this to 5 friends…
• Bill Gates will send you money…
• Email and or the Internet is about to be taxed.
• Don’t open an e-mail named “Jesus saves”…
• Budweiser frogs will destroy your hard drive…
• Write your congressman – the congress is trying to pass a law charging 5 cents per email…
• Needles infected with AIDs found in telephone booth…

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