Computer issue-- any pros out there?

[ATLThrash]

I posted this on need help asap-- I will skip the emotional part of it wich was why I had posted it and just ask the technical-- someone has to be a whiz with computers here. A friend and I were having an email exchange- her personal email to my personal email. It contained lots of stuff about my relationship with my mom. Last night my mom called me and said she a note from this friend had just "popped up" (her words) on her (my mom's) computer. It was a note from the friend addressed to me-- it was her response to a note of last weekend. I never received the response (but my mom somehow did)-- she was able to see all the past exchanges. I have all the antivirus stuff which I tested and it was all okay. I did not have the latest note from the friend in any folders and it was not in sent or received mail. The friend does not know my mother, has nto been on a group email with her, and my mother and I do not have the same provider. My mother is not bluffing as she recounted the note to me-- she does not even know this person. How in the heck could that note have gotten to non-addressees? I was thinking maybe it was infected with some virus from my friend's computer since my computer screened it out and I know my mom does not have the latest virus protections-- but it would have had to go on my server I guess to get my addresses. Any ideas would be appreciated-- the horse is out of the barn so to speak as to what is in it but I am wondering what could have caused it.

[rubywillow]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

ATL, I have no clue about computers. Hope you get help with it soon. But I can imagine how it made you feel for that to happen. I would be devastated too. I'm so paranoid about committing to print my thoughts too. We do have some good computer info here, so maybe someone whill chime in.

[Marshy]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Hi ATL,

I don't know what email provider you have but somewhere in the options list (you might have to rummage around a bit) will be something called the "reply-to address". My girlfriend's email account was hacked by fraudsters and they added an extra "reply-to address" very subtly (adding an extra letter to her name) so that if people replied to emails that she sent out, a copy of the return email was also sent to the fraudsters.
So check that your correct email address is displayed in there, and that only ONE email address (yours) is in there - there will be a space for adding another address, if there's anything in that box, delete it.
Then change your password.
Hope that makes sense, and that might not be the problem at all, it could be something else.
Of course, if this is the problem, it would mean your mum had hacked your account, so let's hope it's not the case!

[ATLThrash]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Thanks marshy-- I will look at that. My mom knows very little about computers-- she is one who thinks if she gets a blue screen she should not turn the computer off or it will implode or something-- I am doubting she could hack and I don't think she went near the computer while she was in town. All the Norton stuff checked out-- who knows? If I believed in signs and random coincidences I would really be even more upset-- since it appears that no one else I know has received the email between my friend and I except my mom.

[Marshy]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Actually, thinking about it, it wouldn't have to be your mum who'd done it. Anyone who knows how to hack into emails could it.
Also, none of your other friends would have received that particular email but your mum would be receiving other emails aimed at you (and I'm sure she would have mentioned that) so it's probably not the problem.
Worth checking though - I check mine occasionally.

There's probably a much simpler explanation but I don't have the computer knowledge to know what it might be.

Good luck!

[ATLThrash]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

She did not mention she got others but it could be that she is now just reading them all if she is getting them and the one she mentioned was the only one that referenced her

[fennel]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

ATL, have you ever accessed your email program from your mom's computer? If so, and if you forgot to sign out, it's a way she could be reading your mail. As Marshy says change your password promptly. You must be feeling pretty freaked out. I hope you get to the bottom of this soon! :l

[ATLThrash]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Hmm-- maybe I have over a year ago, but she is on bellsouth and me comcast and I never have the computer remember the password. I did not even get the email that wa sintended for me-- there had been a long exchange that culminated with my girlfriend writing me and it ending up in my mom's mail. Now my friend cannot find the tiem in her sent mail, I don't have it etc. Very odd indeed.

[fennel]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Could your mom have read your email at YOUR house? And deleted the message? This is very weird.

[Marshy]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

fennel;1121191 wrote: Could your mom have read your email at YOUR house? And deleted the message? This is very weird.

It is very weird.

ATL, I have to ask - were you drinking? When I was drinking I could quite easily have received the email, forwarded it to my mum in a fit of pique, deleted it when I felt remorseful - and the next day had absolutely no memory of any of that.

[ATLThrash]

Computer issue-- any pros out there?

Marshy--fair question but absolutely not-- I wrote my email to a friend on a Sunday morning, no drinking, I realy have not been drinking much if at all since I know it will get me in trouble. I have never been a drunk emailer (drunk dialer when I was in college but who isn't then?) and when I am plowed I don't think I would even be able to send something then delete it. My friend responded to me yesterday from the Sunday email (supposedly) but I did not get it-- the note that was foirwarded contained my old notes but it was clearly from my friend to me onyesterday-- that much I know from what my mom was telling me it said and from what my friend confirmed she discussed. It was not in any mail folders I have. But after reading Fennel's first question I did think if maybe I could have bookmarked the comcast page long ago at her house and saved the password. She had said the email just popped up-- I suppose it is possible that if she went to the comcast page just while browsing around in favorites that it could have greeted her with you have one mail message or something. If she did it just at that time the email would come in remotely to her computer and she could have deleted it after reading it. If you do that it will not show up on your regular computer-- it goes to trash and that is it. That is the only way I can see that only one email could go from another person and get intercepted by her with no record of it on my actual machine. That may be more likely than just one random email happening to be sent to someone my pal does not know but to no one else in my address book or to no one else in my friend's. address book In other words-- she intercepted the one note -- perhaps innocently-- by going to a page that was bookmarked with a saved password-- I usually don't save the password and I have changed it now-- but I guess it is possible. Whatever it was, it is done now, I changed the password all I cna hoep for is that it does not cause too much blowback with the rest of my family.