From time to time, we are sent bits in the e-mail that are just too good to sit on although we end up shoving them in a file folder for future reference anyway. The article below has been burning a hole in NOWAYWINS' hard drive for a while (I didn't ask how long), yet the advice is more than timely and very much worth your read.

Are E-mail Hoaxes Harmless--Not!
By David Emery

Email hoaxes have become so prevalent that they're regarded in some quarters as a threat to network integrity comparable to that of actual computer viruses. At the U.S. Department of Energy, a group called the Computer Incident Advisory Capability monitors and debunks both phony virus alerts and chain letters as an integral part of its overall security program.

"They're both hoaxes," said spokesman David Schwoegler in a recent interview, "and they have the same objective: to generate an unusually high volume of e-mail traffic, which crashes the server. Then the whole system is down." For this reason, many companies and institutions now forbid the sending of chain email by employees or other account-holders on their systems.

The threat posed to individual users is less dramatic, but in these days of ever-increasing spam people are getting fed up with the amount of garbage clogging their inboxes. Net hoaxes account for a growing percentage of the glut (see the unstoppable U.S. Postal Tax on Email Hoax for particularly virulent example [http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/blemtax2.htm]).

One reason for the increase is the constant influx of new and inexperienced users unfamiliar with Netiquette and unaware of how rampant misinformation is on the Internet. Old hoaxes and chain letters are revived and recirculated right alongside newly-invented ones. Just when one dies down another surfaces (or resurfaces) in a never-ending cycle. Everyone is asking what can be done about it.

There are few solutions at this point beyond redoubling our efforts to expand awareness and change people's habits. To many, it seems, clicking the "Forward" button on their email client is a reflex. To borrow a mantra from self-help parlance: They need to learn that this is not okay.

One way each of us can deal with the problem is by familiarizing ourselves with the best information sources on Internet hoaxes and sharing them with the uninformed. This involves some effort, but consider that it may well be worth it in cases where repeat offenders barrage you time and time again with unwanted email forwards. Helping to educate them will benefit you (and all of us) in the long run.

From Urban Legends Weekly, Issue 061699 (http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/weekly/aa061699.htm)

How to Spot an Email Hoax
from your Urban Legends and Folklore Guide
(http://urbanlegends.about.com/index.htm)

Without researching the factual claims made in a forwarded email there's no 100% sure way to tell it if it's a hoax, but here you'll find common signs to watch for...

Here's How:

1. Note whether the text was actually written by the person who sent it to you. If not, be skeptical.
2. Look for the telltale phrase, 'Forward this to everyone you know.'
3. Look for statements like 'This is not a hoax' or 'This is not an urban legend.' They usually mean the opposite of what they say.
4. Look for overly emphatic language, the frequent use of UPPERCASE LETTERS and multiple exclamation points!!!!!!!
5. If the message seems geared more to persuade than to inform, be suspicious. Hoaxers are out to push emotional buttons.
6. If the message purports to give you extremely important information that you've never heard of before or seen elsewhere in legitimate venues, be suspicious.
7. Read carefully and think critically about what the message says, looking for logical inconsistencies, violations of common sense and obviously false claims.
8. Look for subtle or not-so-subtle jokes, indications that the author is pulling your leg.
9. Check for references to outside sources. Hoaxes will not typically name any, nor link to Websites with corroborating information.
10. Check to see if the message has been debunked by Websites that cover Internet hoaxes.

Tips:

1. Virtually any chain email you receive (i.e., any message forwarded multiple times) is more likely to be false than true. Be skeptical.
2. Hoaxers usually try every means available to make their lies believable -- e.g., mimicking a journalistic style, attributing the text to a 'legitimate' source, etc.
3. Be especially wary of health-related rumors. Most importantly, never act on this type of rumor without first verifying its accuracy with your doctor or other reliable source.

Other Articles This Issue:

Article: FAQ About Copyrights Online by Arizona_Kate

Article: Cleaning Your Computer by NOWAYWINS and AngelPie_Mouse

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