You get those emails at least once per week. I get them hundreds of times a day (I manage networks, remember).
“Click here to meet HOT SINGLES in YOUR AREA”
“Click here for your FREE TRIAL of ….”
“Congratulations! You’ve just won ___________. Click here to claim your prize”
Guess what? Nearly 100% of the time, these links can get you into trouble. At the VERY LEAST, you’re opening yourself into additional unsolicited commercial email (aka SPAM). Yet people keep on clicking. How do I know? Because if people stopped clicking on the attachments, spammers would have to move on to a new way to “advertise”. They know a percentage will click, and a small percentage of clickers will buy. That’s all they need to keep on truckin’.
This goes also for attachments. Don’t click them. How do you know an attachment is openable? Well, were you expecting an attachment? If not, ask the person who sent it to you. Don’t know the person who sent it? DELETE THAT MAIL RIGHT NOW.
It should also go without saying that your bank/paypal/credit card is NEVER EVER EVER EVER going to email you asking you to click this link to verify your account information. These emails (some look better than others) are designed to get you to devulge your information and RIP YOU OFF. If you get such an email, call your bank (use the yellow pages and not the email) and ask them. Trust me, you won’t hurt their feelings.
