Email has become nearly as common as a name: It’s something we all have and very few alarms go off when someone asks what it is.
But in the case of handing out your email address, maybe it should.
That little tidbit of personalized information is used for communication. Some websites use it for a login. And lots of people personalize their email or make it easier to remember by adding something like their birthdate or the day they graduated. People even, incredibly, may include information that’s part of their answer to security questions to bank accounts or other sites within their email addresses. A gal named Ima Goof, born July 14, might choose Imagoof714@whateverdomain.com.
Experts say it’s a very good idea to limit the number of people who have access to your email address to those who need it or with whom you have some kind of relationship, personal or professional.
There are lots of reasons why.
Norton, with its expertise in online security, says emails are often snagged by hackers in data breaches. And while that’s not quite as bad as losing your social security number to a hacker, it could be the key to open the portal to identity theft.
“If a cybercriminal were to gain access to your email address without also getting a hold of your email account password, it’s unlikely they could do much damage. But if they also get your password, they can cause you plenty of pain.”
And there are ways to crack passwords, especially if you’ve personalized your email with tidbits about you.
Adam Levin of Credit.com wrote a column on email security for ABC News several years ago outlining dangers that have not gone away. Rather, hackers and scammers have gotten better at their scummy efforts.
Levin calls an email address “one of the pathways into your financial life.”
Warns J.R. Tietsort, chief information security officer at Aura, “Spam, scam, and phishing emails are more than just annoyances. As fraudsters become more sophisticated, they are able to design scam emails that you can’t help but fall for because they seem so real.”
Scamming and spamming
Among the ways these experts say your email can be used:
- To pretend to be you and communicate with others.
- To connect you to other information about you gleaned from data breaches.
- To gain access to your employer’s email.
- To communicate directly with you for the purpose of a scam — with “excellent” bargains, requests for information and threats of big penalties for unpaid bills that are designed to get you to respond and prove you don’t owe it. Your inbox is a phishing pond. “If you fall for the trap,” Levin warned, “you will become an unwitting co-conspirator in the theft of your own identity.”
- To spam people or make it appear you endorse something.
- To reset other passwords and lock or unlock accounts.
- To control your social media accounts — and lock you out.
- To steal sensitive information and blackmail you, according to Aura.
- To verify your identity, which is powerful in the hands of someone who is not actually you.
- It can also just be annoying, as companies that have your email may sell them to an endless group of other companies that then have your email. And if you try to opt out, warns Chron, you may just be verifying your email address.
“Fraudsters know that your email address is at the core of your digital identity. Your inbox is home to everything from bills to passwords, login information, sensitive data, photos, and videos,” Tietsort wrote.
Protect yourself
The good news is you don’t have to provide your email to everyone who asks for it. Sometimes there’s a legitimate need and sometimes there isn’t, so be selective. If you’re not sure, read the privacy policies and see what companies say they do with your personal information, including your email address.
Among other ways to protect yourself:
- Norton says never use the same password for your email account that you use for anything else. Make it totally unique.
- Make it complicated to crack. Misspell words, include letters, use capitals, add numbers and symbols. Do not use a birthdate, address, part of a social security number or something someone could easily guess if they knew you or had access to some basic information about you.
- Turn on two-step verification. And a cell phone is better for a verification tool than an email address.
- If you have reason to believe your email’s been compromised, warn people to contact you directly if they receive a message that seems off.