Protect each others privacy when sending emails

We’ve all received emails, where our email address is “published” along with many others… You and I know immediately that the email was obviously sent to that entire group of people whether their address was in the TO or the CC line… This not only looks odd and unprofessional, it also exposes the email addresses of people who may have wanted to keep their email addresses private.. 

Then you have the issue of seeing layers and layers of email addresses when you receive jokes, stories and other “’forwards”.. 

We all have a responsibility to protect each other’s privacy and that includes email addresses… When sending an email to more than 1 person, but especially when you are sending an email to a group of people - always use the BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) LINE for addresses – this means everyone will get the email, but they will not see each other email addresses – therefore protecting their privacy… 

None of us have the right to share someone else’s email address with anyone else... Bcc (Blind Carbon Copy): recipients get a copy of the email, but their email address is automatically deleted at delivery. Nobody except you and the Bcc: recipient will know that they got a copy, and their email address will not be exposed for everyone to see. 

In some email services when you have opened the Write/Compose screen to create a new email message, you will see the 3 Send to list options automatically: TO – CC (Carbon Copy) – BCC (Blind Carbon Copy).. But in some services, such as hotmail, you may only see the TO – so when you want to use the BCC, Click Show Cc & Bcc (right above the To: line and to the right) which then adds these two options to your screen…. 

Remember once an email is sent, you and I have no idea who or what the sender will do with that email… so protect the privacy of your friend, family and co-workers.

Email & Online Safety Tips:

Most of us have been using email and shopping online for quite some time, so we know how to use it safely – right?? Wrong… we all get comfortable and too often when we aren’t paying attention, we leave ourselves open to scams without even realizing it… so just a few basic reminders to stay safe online…

BE SURE IT SAYS HTTPS - Before you ever type in any personal information whatsoever on a website (shopping, medical facilities, registering on a company site for info, travel websites, etc) – always be the one who went to that website by typing the website into you browser address bar..  Don’t go there by using a link in an email you received..  Once there, you always want to see https in the Internet browser address bar before you ever type any personal information.  For example when I got to walgreens.com to see what’s on sale – the address in the browser bar will read:

http://www.walgreens.com/default.jsp

But when I left click on the “shopping cart” the data in the internet browser toolbar changes and now reads:

https://www.walgreens.com/store/checkout/cart.jsp

REPUTABLE COMPANIES NEVER ASK FOR INFO VIA EMAIL - Your bank, favorite online store, mortgage or credit card companies will NEVER – NEVER – NEVER - send you an email requesting sensitive information such as your username, password, account number, etc. If you ever receive an email asking for you for this information – print it off and delete it.. Once you print it off, notify the company directly of what has happened.  When you type information into any website, you want to be sure you generated the access to that specific website… never click on a link from an email to visit the site.

BE WARY OF EMAILS FROM GENERIC NAMES – Spammers, Scammers and others who are phishing often send emails using a single name “Jean” or other common names, such as “Uncle Dave” or a common company name – Wells Fargo, Bank of America, or political affiliation these days…  But that doesn’t mean that it is who you think it is.. Most of our friend or families emails come in showing both their first and last name - Pay attention to the email and any attachments they may include – go with your gut, if it looks funny or unusual delete it…

IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, IT’S PROBABLY A HOAX!

When we receive emails offering easy money, free or cheap products and services, requests for money because our friend is stuck in another country or an offer for a foreign lotteries – remember they are almost always a hoax…  delete them and never, never forward them to anyone on your email contact list/address book

PROTECT YOUR FRIENDS & FAMILIES PRIVACY - Always be sure you type friend & families email addresses in the “BCC” line of all emails (not the To line), so they receive the email but don’t see each other’s addresses – this way if and when they forward the joke or information to others, email addresses won’t be shared unknowingly..  

If and when you receive an email with lots of other addresses, as soon as you choose to forward it on, be sure to eliminate any of the addresses that are listed before your forward it…  Together we can protect each others privacy and reduce the amount of junk mail we get..