Has this ever happened to you?

[jtryka]

I was just checking my e-mail and I got a note from the collectors society and it was a message forwarded from some member wanting to know if I was interested in buying a coin. I guess it was targeted at people with a registry set, but it seems a little annoying. Just wondering if anyone else has encountered anything similar as this is the first time it's happened to me.

[EVillageProwler]

I *think* I got such a solicitation to one of alternate email addresses. Annoying. I can't remember the details because if I got it, then it's long since been deleted.

 

I do, however, get spam (or worse) email from someone masking as dskeffington. I know that it's not Dena, but I do suspect that someone may have planted something on her computer.

 

Dena - seriously, I recommend that you run a virus scan as well as that Ad-Aware program on your computer. I get a bogus message from you about once a week, and it's been going on for months. (It appears that there's no harm done to me.)

 

EVP

 

[Hoot]

I'll bet this is via the new email feature associated with the sets.

 

Hoot

[Architecht]

jtryka -- The message you likely got was through the new messaging system built into the CR. You can read about it on the front page of the Collectors' Society under the article called "Thwack -- Message for you Sir" (anybody get the Monty Python reference? No? Bleh). As you will read in that article, there are a few limitations built into the system on who can send you messages this way, and how:

 

1) Because it's through our system, and not direct, the sending person never gets your actual email address. Thus, the only way they can reach you is through our system. Because you must reply the same way, you cannot accidently give them your email address. You would have to deliberately type your email address into a message that you sent them through the system.

 

2) Only registered members of the Collectors' Society can use this system. Thus, it is not open to the public at large to send you messages.

 

3) Every member of the CS has the ability to turn off messaging at their discretion. Simply go to the "My Profile" section and disable messaging. You will no longer be reachable through this method at that point.

 

Regards,

Arc

[Architecht]

EVP,

 

It is highly unlikely that you got a coin solicitation because of the CS to any email address unless it came through our messaging system. And that messaging system is only a very recent development.

 

We have not and will not give out any member email addresses to any outside companies or individuals. The only way someone might get your email address is if you typed an email address into the field labeled "Email address (displayed on posts)" in your preferences here on the boards. There is no way to give out your email address through the CS unless maybe you made your public name your email address.

 

As to receiving things under Dena's email address - there's not much she can do about that. Various viruses spread themselves by infecting a machine, and then rifling through all of the received and sent messages for email addresses. They will then send out email FAKED as though it came from an address from the searched mail boxes to another address from those mail boxes. The reason for this is so that no one can easily send an email to the infected person letting them know they've been infected.

 

So basically, it's likely that one of the CS members has become infected (and there are lots of those) who at some point received an administrative email from Dena. Their happy little viruses then went on its way trying to infect other people under Dena's name.

 

Because of the sheer number of people in the world who have received emails under Dena's name (coin-add confirmations, etc.) it's pretty likely that some machines out there are faking themselves off as her.

 

Arc

[dena]

Hi EVP.

 

I get the same bogus messages from your address and others in the Collectors Society. I checked my system for viruses and I am clean. I even took it to have it checked by a professional.

 

It appears that someone had that virus Worm E Klez (or some variation). I'm sure you must remember it. I think there was a thread about it on these boards. I don't remember the specific details but I think it gets into a user's address book and sends bogus messages to and from the listings in the address book. The messages always have two attachments. You are correct, there is no harm done to your computer UNLESS you open the attachments.

 

I think someone we both correspond with has or had that virus.

 

Anyone else know anything about the virus?

 

Dena

 

 

 

 

[Architecht]

Yah, the flip side of Dena's email being out there in many people's inboxes, is that she probably gets way more virus junk than the rest of you. The same thing happens to me with some of my personal addresses from my gaming hobby. Tons of garbage comes in.

 

Arc

[EVillageProwler]

Hmmmm...

 

I openly advertise my hotmail email address. It is to that account that I received the solicitation and the bogus messages from Dena.

 

I am not fussed by any of this, except for the belated realization that the messages didn't come from Dena after all!

 

 

Since this ``affects'' my hotmail account and not my real, ``working'' email address, there is reduced chance that my computer got infected -- especially since Hotmail has excellent filters *and* I just rebuilt my PC from scratch.

 

EVP