Scam mails

Sadly, that is life. If I get one from a university, and I'm not too pushed for time, I might report it, but nobody else will do anything about spam. The big people (Google, Yahoo etc.) don't even bother maintaining abuse and postmaster addresses, as they are supposed to. I don't normally bother even checking where it's come from unless it's particularly egregious by subject or alleged sender name.

If one is persistent, you can set up something in your email client to spot it and dump it straight to the bin, but there's not much else to be done.

Get used to it.

Never log in to anything using a 'provided link' except the NHS

Get your own domain and give everyone a unique email address eg amazon@ ebay@ etc. If any address starts receiving junk you can then automatically discard all mail to that address. Having followed this practice for 20 years I can honestly say that I'm totally spam free.

Malcolm

Or, if you write your own email client, as I did, you can equip it with a Baysian spam filter that learns how to recognise spam. As well as ordinary filters to take out the obvious culprits.

My mother has had one, supposedly from her dentist, with a link that is "Required" to be clicked to confirm the appointment. However, it has the wrong patient name on and she is not due an appointment yet. She is going to phone her dentist on Monday to see if it is a scam or a genuine email that has been sent to the wrong patient.

I use bogofilter plugged into my postfix mail server. It does a pretty good job; any that slips through is forwarded to an internal email address and there sent to bogofilter.

Which to be fair is also how the junk detection in thunderbird works... Each time you hit the junk flag (or for that matter, untick the flag) it learns more for next time.

a few days before a routine checkup, I get sent a text message with a link comprising of jumbled up letters to fill in a NHS dentistry form......

I refuse to do so for obvious reasons.

When I turn up, they say you've not filled in the online form.....

I show them the text message and ask the staff would they click on a link that looked like an assortment of letters? They say yes (!) The point I am making is lost on them.....

Now, they just give me their iPad at the counter and get me to fill in the NHS dentistry form......

S.

I have no doubt that the world and his wife have my email address. It doesn't trouble me. I just have to be careful when I receive emails from unknown sources or even sources seeming to be bona fide, and not click on any URLs they offer. Rather, I have a list of saved URL's established over years that I know are genuine, and if I get an email from say a utility company saying that my rates are changing and please log in to provide a meter reading or whatever, I will use one of those saved URLs rather than the one offered in the email.

Goodness me, where do I have to move to to get a NHS dentist :-)

Come the day:-) I don't think Turnpike was ever that clever.

More likely an error. I get numerous texts/mails in the run up to any dental appointment (private).

This morning I was offered a link to connect to a message on Facebook "from a friend". The sender was not Facebook.

About forty years back in time.

I setup a Facebook account and LinkedIn account back in 2010 when I was evaluating them as "the next big thing". I used a live email address that I keep for such purposes. It still receives updates and has suggestions on people I know, people I have worked with and that sort of thing. This is despite being unused for nearly 12 years.

Makes me wonder quite how many *real* accounts these sites are touting. I also used to get emails from Twitter, but they have now stopped. Musk was quite right to question the numbers the board were touting ...

In message <XYXV$ snipped-for-privacy@marfordfarm.demon.co.uk>, Tim Lamb snipped-for-privacy@marfordfarm.demon.co.uk> writes

Delighted to see that there are at least two people still happily using Turnpike :-)

In message snipped-for-privacy@binnsroad.myzen.co.uk>, Graeme snipped-for-privacy@nospam.demon.co.uk> writes

Make that 3

Adrian

In message <lRm+ snipped-for-privacy@ffoil.org.uk>, Adrian snipped-for-privacy@ku.gro.lioff> writes

In the end I went private and spent £4k on (repair) dentistry but using some methods not normally offered of the NHS.