How to Tell If an Email Warning of a Virus Is Real or Fake

If you are like most people, you often receive emails forwarded by well-meaning relatives, and other associates that warn you about the latest virus threat, and urging you to send the warning to as many other people as possible. These warnings are nearly always false, and play on the fact that many people are afraid of something happening to their computer, coupled with a lack of knowledge of what viruses really do. These false warnings spread like wildfire because we all want to be helpful and warn our own friends before something terrible happens to them!

This article will reveal a few simple things to look for to help you determine if a warning you receive in email is real or is a hoax. Hint: They are nearly always a hoax!

Hoax virus emails share a number of common themes. By looking for these attributes you can quickly determine the validity of the email. Below is a copy of an actual email that I recently received:

This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts. It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called' POSTCARD,' even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately. This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

Source: http://goo.gl/pVZI1