Someone asked me last week a very good question: “I think someone is reading my emails. How can this be and what can I do about it?”
Firstly, if you suspect that someone is reading your messages, change your email password right away.
Secondly, tell-tale signs include:-
Messages being opened and marked with the read envelope (dull grey normally on most email platforms, rather than a golden (unread) envelope) before you have looked at them yourself.- Messages being forwarded from your inbox to another email address unexpectedly. So look at the sent items list.
- Does someone else other than you know your password? If yes, and you think they shouldn’t then you must change it immediately. Don’t make your changed password something that someone else could easily guess.
- The usual advice stands which is repeated here month-in, month-out, get an up-to-date AntiVirus and run a scan. This will at least give-up the ghost if a hacker is using a backdoor or keystroke logger to find your all important details from you. If this is the case, then it means that they have access to everything you have typed, including passwords.
- Also, make sure your firewall is on to detect if unexpected traffic is on your network connection. Further advice about AntiVirus programs and firewalls can be found in this article: Which AntiVirus and how many should I have, and when should I renew or upgrade?.
- If after resetting your password you are still suspicious, get in touch with your email provider or system admin.
For help and advice about passwords, see my post from a couple of years ago on passwords and PIN numbers here: Passing the password grade
Of course, there are endless possibilities and variations of these, but either way, it’s best to keep things in check.
