IT issue - who is right?

[verticality]

Person A keeps getting emails that say they are from Person B. Person B's name is spelled correctly, but their email address is wrong. So instead of being [email protected], it's (made up example) [email protected]. No-one else is receiving these emails from Person B, just Person A.

So who is right?

1. Person A who insists repeatedly that Person B's account is sending these emails and that they are to blame
2. Person B who thinks that these emails are from a third party spammer who has somehow got hold of the data.

And is there any way to find out which account is compromised - Person A or Person B?

(Sorry, I should have been clearer: Person B's name is spelled correctly in the body of the email, but the email address that the message is displayed as being from is wrong).

You can change the 'from' alias to read anything you like so it's meaningless that that says it's from B - if it's not sent from B's email address then it's not from B. This is why scammers change the 'from' field to read HSBC or Santander or HMRC or whoever they are posing as.

Thanks @WoollyFooly!

Where would the scammers have got the information that these two people know each other? They have only had the most minimal contact, so I'm guessing someone's email has been compromised? Is there any way of telling which account it is?

You need to be able to read and understand the full email header to see the the true originating server.

Sounds like someone is pretending to be person B.

For example, if my ex was Freddie Kruger and his email was [email protected] and I wanted to be malicious and awns emails to people so they would think it’s him, I would make an email called [email protected] etc

awns means send

Person B is correct and has probably had their email account hacked, spoofed or something else I don't understand.

I keep getting emails at work from what appears to be one of my clients, but it is clear from the content that she didn't send them herself.

Sounds like Person A needs to do some reading on basic internet safety before he/she downloads a virus that wreaks havock on your systems.

Thanks everyone - sounds like the consensus is that B is correct.

Is there any way of knowing how the spammers got hold of the information originally?

It sounds like you are person A. I think you are wasting your time being cross at person B. They have just been hacked.

No, I'm neither A nor B. A is an in law and B is a member of my family. My loyalties are very much with B, though.

I get this regularly, emails that look like they are from contacts but are actually from random spammers, isn't it just a fact of internet life, it's not a big deal is it unless you're clicking on links but mostly it's obvious it's not from the person it appears to be from.

Why do you need to take sides?

If a person receives something which seems very suspicious in an email, it likely is, no matter who it says its from. Email accounts are easily infiltrated, even more so on home computers with no or minimal virus protection in place. Opening a link, an advert etc can let all types of nasties loose in the inner depths of your computer's history and all type of nonsense can happen.
Both parties should download and run proper anti viral software and make sure they have it operating at all times. It might solve the problem, or at least stop it happening again.
If person b is apparently sending strange things to person a, it is possible they also appear to be sending them to other people they know who have not mentioned this to them!

Is A not particularly internet savvy and is stressed by it. It is just one of those things that happen and just the internet

Sounds like a mututal acquaintance of Person A & B is impersonating Person B.

Person A simply refuses to accept that this is spam and that it's not coming from Person B being repeatedly hacked. Person A has also been quite snidey about Person B's IT abilities (Person B works in IT).

I've tried to explain the situation to Person A, and they will not listen and keep raising it as an issue, which is causing me a headache. That's why I am trying to resolve it, and making sure that I am right before I send yet another email.

It could be A (parent) that has had an IT issues and they have B (grandchild/your child) address or maybe B has - who knows? Why is it such an issue?

Have you emailed the other address that A keeps receiving mail from or looked it up (with a fake email account, preferably). Has A replied to an email therefore signalling it (A's) as a live one?

What do the emails say and how does A know that no one else is getting the same emails?

Some times the ones I get go to my junk inbox, if I don't look I wouldn't even know I'd got them and I would have no way that I can think of to tell if anyone else had received one.

Obviously there is a back story here but A sounds a bit bonkers

Has person B checked their sent mail to make sure that these emails are only going to A?

What is the content of them?

If B's account has been compromised, the data will have come from the account. If the email has been spoofed, then the email addresses being targeted will have just been found online somewhere - haveibeenpawned might show some data but might also not - but in that case, it'd be unusual for it just to be emailing one person, and that seems much more malicious. Spoofing usually occurs to either get money from friends or family who don't check the email is legit, or to send thousands of emails without ruining the spammers own email address.

B is correct, and probably As contacts list has been compromised. A should check haveibeenpwned.com/

The emails just say

"Hi Person A" then a link.

It's not a very convincing attempt at spam, to be honest!

AFAIK Person A hasn't clicked or replied to the address.

If that's what they say they are clearly spam, person A needs to educate themselves on fake emails.

What sort of content is in the emails? Is it offensive in any way or just some kind of generic marketing blurbs?
It sounds to me that someone has created an email address using B's name as the main part of it. Pretty much anyone who knows their name could do that, I could go create an email address for [email protected] & you'd know nothing about it unless I started contacting ppl you know. The person who set up the email also knows A's name & email account. Either A or B could've done that, or anyone else who knows both of them.
Is there anyone on the scene who's stirring? Any bad feeling etc that's being given an outlet?

I randomly get short emails with links, they appear to be from my friend’s email account. I know it’s not her because she died two years ago.

Awww @PickingUpLicks, how upsetting for you