Receiving E-mails Not Addressed to Me

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the phenomenon of receiving emails that are not directly addressed to the recipient. Participants explore the reasons behind this occurrence, particularly in the context of spam emails and email header information.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Technical explanation, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant notes that emails contain header information that can be spoofed, which may lead to receiving messages that appear to be sent to someone else.
  • Another participant suggests that being "blind copied" on an email is a common technique used in spam, where multiple recipients receive the same message without their addresses being visible.
  • There is a repeated inquiry about the content of the emails, with participants expressing curiosity about whether they were spammy or involved clickbait.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the mechanisms that can lead to receiving such emails, but there is no consensus on the specific content or implications of the emails in question.

Contextual Notes

Participants do not delve into the technical details of email protocols or the specific methods used for spoofing, leaving some assumptions unexamined.

Drakkith
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Quick question.

I just received an spam-type e-mail that says it was addressed to info@gmail.com, which is obviously not my e-mail. I'm pretty sure this isn't the only e-mail I've received which doesn't appear to have been addressed to me. Why would I be getting e-mails which don't appear to be addressed to me?
 
Computer science news on Phys.org
emails contain a lot of 'header' information which is not part of the message itself.
Much of that can be spoofed without affecting the transmission of the message.
Scammers also use this fact to make it appear that you received a message from somebody who didn't actually send it.
 
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I see. Thanks rootone!
 
You've been "blind copied" on an email, probably along w/ thousands of others. Only the single "to" address shows up and it doesn't even have to be a real one. All of the BC's go through regardless. It's a common technique for spam.
 
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Greg Bernhardt said:
What was the content? Spammy? Click spam :)

Yep!
 

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