How can I stop someone using my email address?
Sunday, 16 May, 2004
I've received several returned email messages in my Hotmail inbox. They were sent from MY email address and were Spam. The sender is using a version of my name (apparently guessed from my email address). Other than changing my password, what are my options for stopping this occurrence?
Avery Roff-Nichols, Auckland, New Zealand
 You can't do anything. The way the Internet works, people can spoof you -- that is, they can send email that appears to have come from you. They don't need to access your Hotmail account to do it -- they don't know your password but they don't care.
It's no different to normal mail -- there's nothing to stop you sending a letter that purports to have been sent by someone else.
Perhaps other readers can share their email experiences. Is this a problem for you? Has anyone found a solution?
Paul Zucker
 Reader solutions
AdolphPosted: 19/09/2008 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? Well they could be tracked and they should be found and disposed of. Too much time and money is being spent on trying to stop misuse of the Internet to deliver spam or worse to try to rob people. Neither the large companies or the governments of the USA or Europe or the USSR are prepared to do anything about this. This misuse is coming through Yahoo etc and of course they could do something. The time and money that is wasted on trying to stop hacking, phishing, and spam could be used to help those in the World who really need help. Really need Food, Really need work, Really need medicine, Really need shelter.
What we have to put up with is scum of the worse kind. No! destroy them! And good ridance Lina WanPosted: 25/10/2007 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? You Can't. If someone is a loser/low life enough to want to use your name/address, or to hack into accounts, they will find ways. Hotmail, Yahoo , etc can't and won't do anything to help unless it involves money being taken from you. RandPosted: 10/01/2007 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? You might try shutting down your email address for a while and see what happens. It that is not helpful, close it permanently and open a new address. sallyPosted: 02/06/2006 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? i have a problem and boy/girl has stolen my password and now using my email address my old one sally_is_da_best@hotmail.com and now i cant use it help me please i want me email address back along with me messages and contacts everything help me please AnnePosted: 27/11/2005 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? I have the same problem with my msn account. Each day I recieve hundreds of return amil that look like I sent it...some with viruses in them. Mostly they are for refinancing of property. All of it is SPAM. I have emailed the header of each one...a very time consuming endever...to MSN. Unfortunately, it seems there is nothing they can do. I have noticed Hotmail and MSN seems to be the most used for this spamming activity. I might have to get rid of it to stop it. It's way out of control! m.Posted: 18/05/2004 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? I've started using a digital certificate to sign my email and sometime encrypt it. Jason O.Posted: 17/05/2004 re: How can I stop someone using my email address? I have encountered a similiar problem. I receive emails from an institute informing me that the Netsky virus was found in an email attachment I had sent.
The poroblem is, I never sent an email on the day, using that address (isp) and no attachments.
My ISP informed me there is nothing I can do, just add the address to the blocked list.
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