Outlook Security on messages

  • Thread starter Thread starter Vince
  • Start date Start date
V

Vince

When some spam messages slip through the net into the
user's inbox, and the message is opened sometimes it goes
off to find the Url contained in the message. Is there
anyway of opening these messages to find out if they are
geniune or not without going off to find the Url and
download pictures etc?
 
|When some spam messages slip through the net into the
|user's inbox, and the message is opened sometimes it goes
|off to find the Url contained in the message. Is there
|anyway of opening these messages to find out if they are
|geniune or not without going off to find the Url and
|download pictures etc?
|
unless the user is completely brain dead, it's usually fairly simple to
spot what is spam or not.......
 
geez, rifleman, who...umm..."voided" in your cornflakes?

It's not so easy for newbies to spot spam. It's a legitimate question.
Don't be such an elitist.

Vince, not suggesting this is the best way, but for those messages that I
surmise to be spam, but I still want to peek at, I do a "Save As..." and
save the message as text only. Then look at the text file.

BondG
 
|geez, rifleman, who...umm..."voided" in your cornflakes?
|
|It's not so easy for newbies to spot spam. It's a legitimate question.
|Don't be such an elitist.

Don't eat cornflakes.
I stand by my original comments.
Most spam these days mentions Viagra or penis length in the subject.
|
|Vince, not suggesting this is the best way, but for those messages that I
|surmise to be spam, but I still want to peek at, I do a "Save As..." and
|save the message as text only. Then look at the text file.
|
|BondG
|
|
||> In article <[email protected]>,
|> (e-mail address removed) says...
|> |When some spam messages slip through the net into the
|> |user's inbox, and the message is opened sometimes it goes
|> |off to find the Url contained in the message. Is there
|> |anyway of opening these messages to find out if they are
|> |geniune or not without going off to find the Url and
|> |download pictures etc?
|> |
|> unless the user is completely brain dead, it's usually fairly simple to
|> spot what is spam or not.......
|
|
|
 
This is an important issue, and the reason I am looking through the
newsgroup today. I'd like to see someone give a response to either tell
us how to turn off automatic fetching of internet content, or that such
a feature does not exist in Outlook.

I'm pretty sure my old OE had it in it as a check box ('Don't load
graphics' or the like). In fact, every email program I've used has that
capability. Where is it in Outlook? I've looked in every option pane,
customization dialog, and even poked around in the registry looking for
a setting to say "Dont go online unless I ask".

Sending HTML mail with embedded URLs is a technique for verifying
SPAMable email IDs. Even when not used to confirm an ID, I still don't
want to see the latest adult photo in my preview pane, especially when
my kids are within eyesight of the PC. Yes, I have spam filtering on.
Many levels, in fact. But sleazebag spammers are always crafting their
flotsam to get through those filters so they can find the one idiot out
of 10,000 (or 100,000) who will respond with a credit card number to an
herbal viagra ad or another collection of nudie pictures.

In order to properly control my mail, I have to be able to avoid
downloading mail content until I have confirmed this is a legit piece of
mail. If I can't do it in Outlook, I'm going to have to go back to
other less-cohesive mail/calendaring solutions.

Microsoft is always on the defensive over hackers, and to some extent
Spam. The Outlook website has Crabby Patty's tips to avoid spam, but
what about not downloading HTML content? The world isn't the flower
filled love fest someone at MS must believe it is. Not all email is to
save the world or my company. Some is junk from people who should be in
stocks on the public square.

Any MVP out there with some insight into this?
 
Outlook 2003: Built-in feature, external content loading turned off by
default

Outlook 2002: Service pack adds ReadAsPlain registry value to force all
incoming messages to display as plain text

Outlook 2000: VB code solution remove HTML content (see
http://www.slipstick.com/dev/vba/zaphtml.htm)

All versions: Use AutoPreview instead of Preview/Reading Pane to see no HTML
content at all
 
Yes! Real answers. Although not the easy solutions we would all like
to see, at least now I can fix my outlook installations to prevent
spam-n-porn from polluting my system/display/kids' minds.

I thank you Sue.
 
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