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Virus Emails |
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Every Cowgirl's Dream receives an enormous amount of email during any given week. Unfortunately, Every Cowgirl's Dream and other successful web companies are prone to having their email addresses (valid or invalid) used illegally. It is commonly called "spoofing". It doesn't take an incredibly bright person to spoof email addresses. However, often times the recipient is unaware of technical issues involving email. The recipient may block the so called "sender" or contact the "sender" to try to resolve email issues.
You can right click on the sender's name, right click on properties and read the technical path of the email. However, if the sender's name has been "spoofed" then this information is invalid and no longer helpful to you.
Virus infected emails are another matter. Virus emails are tricky cyber devils. Most virus (code) emails will "set up" after you reboot your computer and then the virus party begins in your pc.
When a virus infected email is sent, (intentionally or unintentionally) it generally attaches itself in the Windows temporary file folder. The first place to look is in your Windows directory in the Temporary Internet file folder. If you are not aware of executable files and operating system files, then this information means nothing to you.
After the virus propagates, more than likely (depending on which virus code you received) it will take control of your browser. Usually it will send out a copy of the original email to people that are in your address book.
What You Can Do If you are a home user or novice pc user, you would benefit in taking an Internet Security course at your local college. At least, take the time to attend a credible email seminar. If you are an admin person, your company may want to send you to an Internet Security class. Having a better understanding about the Internet and email issues will keep you better prepared on how to deal with pc security problems.
If you own a web based company, then you will want to hire a professional Internet company that deals with security issues. It amazes me of the many companies that are running shop "naked" because they fail to recognize the importance of keeping an Internet Security company under contract. Having the latest version of an anti-virus software is not enough. Having a firewall is not enough to protect your pc from Internet terrorists. To keep up with the hundreds of thousands of virus and worm codes that are written daily, you have to invest in an IT company that is on top of this. Trust me, investing in a professional Internet security company is more economical than purchasing a new system or having to work out technical problems that could have been avoided all together. And if you are in business, you have no doubt, made an enemy or two. Just by being successful makes you a target for Internet abuse.
To help process legitimate emails, Every Cowgirl's Dream has hired Network Advocates in April of 2002 to assist in Internet Security and Spam issues. Since that time, there has not been a problem with virus infected emails or malice code. I do not even see the infected emails, so my valuable time is spent on business issues. Network Advocates will set up an anti-spam program for you too. As the Internet changes on a daily basis, so will your anti-spam software needs.
If you have received an illegitimate email that appears to have "originated" from Every Cowgirl's Dream, please be assured that our chosen Internet Security company (Network Advocates) is taking care of these abusive emails. It is an on going process that is dealt with on a daily basis.
Good News There is a little bit of good news from all of this email mess. If you have a web company and someone is "spoofing" your email, they are driving traffic to your site. For this reason, you will want to draft a form letter explaining email issues and Internet security problems. Go a step further and let them know what your company is doing about it.
Remember, your web site should be your dream...and not your nightmare.
Cindy
K. McKinnon |