Have suffered a break-in to an e-mail account.

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Katie_Jennings

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Following an unfortunate period where somehow my e-mail account has become hi-jacked by a third party, I have had a devil of a time trying to convince my contacts that I was not the author of the (often rude) messages sent. It hasn't turned out to be quite so damaging as it possibly could have been but it is still deeply worrying.

Does anyone have any clue as to how this can happen? I have heard that this sort of thing does go on and that all users can be vulnerable - irrespective of e-mail account type.
 
Sending of mail messages does not require access to a mailbox. It's rather like ordinary post. You use your mailbox to look at mail that is delivered to you. Your browser may also have the tools to create new messages, but you do not need to access the mailbox to send messages.

Any tom, dick or harry, can post letters and sign your name at the end. Likewise for eMail any Tom, dick or harry can connect to an SMTP server and send a mail message with any particulars (including yours). Sorry, it's a fact of life.

If the recipients are aware that you didn't send the messages, their mailbox provider should be able to trace back from whence they came. If the problem is serious enough, the relevant ISPs can trace the IP address of the originator, and maybe even the individual responsible.

Your recipients need to start the ball rolling. There is nothing your mailbox provider can do, as the messages (likely as not) have never been anywhere near any of their systems.
 
if its of any consolation, i have (over time) had receipts saying ......the email you sent has been destroyed as it contained a virus.... thing is i never sent it as i had never heard of the person / company that had received it.

All i can suggest is if possible change emaill addresses. I do so now when i get "too much " spam
 
breezer Posted:

if its of any consolation, i have (over time) had receipts saying ......the email you sent has been destroyed as it contained a virus.... thing is i never sent it as i had never heard of the person / company that had received it.
Click to expand...

I beleive this type of email is looking for a reply, it acts to validate an email address is live.
 
Mail is often sent which includes an unsubscribe option. Unless you are certain that you have subscribed to the service, you should never click the link.

There are various viruses that will scan your address book and attempt to send emails to everyone in it. Make sure your Windows updates are current and that your anti-virus software is up to date.
 
Another thought, if you have not seen any of these messages in your "sent messages" box then maybe your account wasn't hijacked but someone used Prank mail and used your email address?
Or perhaps your account is a work one and you walked away for a moment without locking your workstation and a "colleague" sent some mail from your account?
 
Probable causes for this behavior are viruses that use 'email spoofing'. Chances could be that you are in the address book of someone who has such a virus. Emails are sent from their PC, to people in their address book, FROM addresses in their address book. Like a three way conversation, making the originator hard to track unless you know how to trace headers and such.
 
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