What would you make of the following message in your inbox, Sorry, should be in Relationships but am in too much of a hurry to find it.

[2sugars]

i loved your profile and I think we can be friends.

just hit me up on msn messenger i am [email protected]

???

no dont download msn messanger to reply top the spammer. its just spam.

stop being so daft.

This is spam! I also get lots of these a day that read almost exactly word for word the same. 2sugars, there is literally no way this is not spam, please don't worry about it and certainly don't engage with it.

And anyway NO-ONE should use MSN because it's virus ridden and vile - use a third party app that connects to MSN, Yahoo, ICQ etc all in one like Trillian - less viruses targetted for those.

Oh, is that why I have to remove on average 4 trojan horse viruses a week?

Yup, pretty much.

Yes, there are thousands of reasons why I'm suspicious of H, the least of which was a hand-written list of all the porn sites which could possibly exist. With horrible names too.

So, how do I get decent spam software pronto?

Well, I say that flippantly, but things like opening email attachments from unknown sources (e.g. spam) or forwarded by a friend in a suspicious way (I never ever EVER click on a link IM'd me unless my friend has discussed it with me first - it's a common virus ploy), surfing on certain dodgy websites can use browser exploits, etc. It's flippantly easy to get viruses & trojans on a Windows PC which is why having a good virus checker is essential.

Alternatively, buy a Mac

AVG Free is an excellent free virus checker/remover for Windows.

Sorry to hear that 2sugars.

I have spybot search and destroy and CCleaner which can be dowloaded for free IIRC

Spam software... just googling hang on.

Oh yes, I get AVG too. It updates prcatically every time I switch on.

Another vote for AVG - it's very good, and free.

Which email client do you use, 2shoes?

And would you consider changing your email client. Again, not using Microsoft Outlook helps ... Thunderbird is a free mail client made by the same people who make the Firefox browser and has spam protection built in.

RD I've got the latest free version of AVG, which makes me wonder if I really am NOT worrying about nothing.

AVG will kill viruses, 2sugars, but it doesn't prevent spam. I still get loads of that . If only I needed viagra or rolex, I'd be spoilt for choice.

Windows Mail.

No - AVG is VIRUS protection not SPAM protection. And even the best spam software won't prevent some getting through.

SpamFighter is free and is a plugin for Windows Mail - no idea how effective it is though as I've never used it. Personally, I'd recommend switching to Thunderbird for your mail client as the better long term solution, tbh.

LOL wg, I got those on our old PC, but the point is I've only had this laptop since December, and only MN on it. And send my mum emails. But I suppose if it's the same addy, it makes no difference - they'll get there anyway. Confused 2sugars holds her head in her hands ..... and wonders.

Would YOU reply to the MSN invitation?

No I would not under any circumstances reply to the MSN invitation.

Sounds like spam

2sugars - if H has his own PC, isn't it unlikely he would put your shared email address on anything he did sign up to ?? I think this particular email is unlikely to be anything suspicious.

Noooo, really don't reply to the msn invitation - you might find yourself riddled with viruses and spyware if you do.

I have over 2000 of these emails in my junk folder on yahoo. I must delete them, but they soon mount out again.

So, the general concensus is that I can put this down to spam, and nothing to do with his dodgy internet dealings?