Chain Letters

On the Detrimental impact of Chain Letters on Social Networks

In the 90s, people found it fun to share chain letters. At the time, this was something new to many of us, so we found them fun. We received and then passed them on, but over the volume of chain letters become a torrent of spam. The letter is fun the first time you see it. If twenty people forwarded it to 20 more, then we’re speaking about four hundred e-mails. We’re speaking about thousands of letters that have no productive effect on society.

E-mail security

Many people have e-mail accounts and enjoy writing to their friends every day, but little do they know about the dangers of hackers or people who have too much time on their hands. A few weeks ago while I was on the computers it struck me how simple it might be to enter someone’s account. I therefore wondered what methods there were of finding passwords.

Chain letters:

We all receive many forwards, chain letters and so on. Sometimes there are some which are like a form asking many harmless questions about your hobbies, favourite foods etc. and you fill these in without thinking very hard. Some of them even include questions such as “What is your dream vacation spot?” or “What would you buy if you won the lottery?” Notice anything? That’s right! They are the same questions as the ones that e-mail providers suggest for the password hint. By sending out this information, you invite people to attempt a break-in..