Don't Fall For The E-mail Scammers
I don't worry about scammers anymore, because I can positively identify them using Spam Slicer. Here's how you can do it too:
1. Sign up for a Spam Slicer account, at which time you'll be able to choose a Spam Slicer ID.
This Spam Slicer ID can be used as an e-mail address with a couple twists. First, it will deliver the mail to any e-mail account that you have - including AOL, Hotmail, Yahoo!mail, MSN, or your favorite ISP. Second, you can vary the Spam Slicer ID - and still get your mail. For instance, if your Spam Slicer ID is johndoe, you can have mail sent to johndoe.10000@spamslicer.com or johndoe.newyorktimes@spamslicer.com - and you'll still get your e-mail.
2. When you sign up for online management of your bank account or credit card, use your Spam Slicer ID instead of your standard e-mail address - only put some characters in that will positively identify any mail that comes in from that specific account. (This works best if you give each account a different address based on your Spam Slicer ID.)
3. If a message comes into your inbox that says it is from the Discover Card, look at the address to which it was sent. If it does not match the address that you gave Discover, it is absolutely fake. Use the same tactic whenever mail comes in for your other charge cards or accounts.
Bottom line: the only way that they can get the exact match is to get the address from the person to whom you gave it.
Disclaimer: I invented Spam Slicer. (Yes, that's my name on the patent application.) So I have a vested interest in letting you know about it. But I also have a vested interest in making sure that you get the best solutions possible. I stake my reputation on it!
David