Someone GANKED my email addy to sign up for coupons!

[duffgirl]

I got an email from Boxtops.com welcoming me to their program. (HUH?) Someone apparently took my email address (I have THEIR name and physical address) and signed up for a Boxtops account where they get free coupons mailed to them. I am still unclear how she got my information but since it is coupon related I am wondering if she could have gotten it from HCW(not from HCW, but off my user cp)?


I haven't been able to get ahold of anyone in customer service but this just irks me! I was able to change the password because it comes to my email account but I have this lady's name and address (across the US from me, and NO ONE I know) and I am WATCHING FOR YOU, M.E. !

Now I am wondering what other info this person has "borrowed" from me... I am kinda nervous about it and feel a little violated.

[Wolfie1991]

Sounds like a bit of a glitch to me. Doesn't add up. Good Luck!

[duffgirl]

Originally Posted by Wolfie1991 Sounds like a bit of a glitch to me. Doesn't add up. Good Luck!

That is what I thought, at first. If I had an account, and she had an account, names could get switched around, it happens. But I don't have an account, never had...

Someone had to enter my email address(which is my full, very unusual name @hotmail.com) into their system, and I know it wasn't me.

I am going to get more info as soon as customer service opens in the AM.

[jonjaktez]

How do you know it came from here?

Someone could have hacked your computer or gotten it from someone else that knows someone you know, but the person didn't know that the other person got the email address, or someone could have seen your username somewhere and played around with it.

Or there is this glitch:

I have several email address with my ISP. Recently when I created a new email address for a certain reason, I discovered that the name on the "homepage" wasn't mine. I then forgot that I didn't have a paypal for that specific username and when I went to paypal to sign up, the former owner had a paypal account. Since it's my email address now, I closed the paypal account. It had the former owners name and address. This could have happened to you. Maybe someone had the email address prior to you and boxtopforeducation sent out an email and it came to you.

I'm on boxtopforeducation and I get emails form them all the time.

[billig]

Ganked?
???

[purplefdu]

Being hotmail means its not a "used" e-mail. They never re-issue e-mails, I've been hopign they would close and reissue one I used in high school with no luck.

There is the possibility they have a similar e-mail, despite how unusual you think it is. I know of no vbulletin glitch that would allow someone to see your e-mail from the forum here. Tracking cookies and keyloggers could easily though. Whens the last time you ran anti-virus/spyware?

[queenofthehivemomof5]

Unless you have posted your email on the site somewhere (and I just looked and did not see that) there would be no way for someone to retreive your email address from HCW. If you have it enabled to let other members email you from HCW they are not shown your email address unless you reply to thier email. And of course HCW does not give out or share email addresses with anyone.

Could you have posted your email address somewhere else, signed up for boxtopsforeducation inadvertantly from somewhere else by opting into an email or other printable coupon site?

Of course you can always unsubscribe to the boxtops email newsletters too. They are not spammy in my opinion and a very reputable company AFAIK so unsubscribing should work.

[jkelstaten]

It has to be some sort of mistake. There is no reason for someone to sign up at BTFE with multiple e-mail addresses. It doesn't do anything for them. Plus, why would they put their real address and name on an account with someone else's e-mail. It's a newsletter. Of course you're going to have access to that information.

[Landuponastar]

Just remember that every email you send out has your email address attached. An example would be a joke that gets passed around and forwarded many many times. I have received an email from a friend (One that I know well enough to open it), it was forwarded to her from a friend of hers. In these emails you can see the heading from each person that sent it and the last one I received from her had probably 15-20 headings in it. It also included all of the email addresses that this specific email had been mailed to and/or sent from for the last 15 forwards. Always think about that when you send out emails.

You just never know who will get a hold of your information. That is just another way for your email address to end up in the hands of millions of people that you don't know from all over the world even.

I started receiveing family updates from a friend of a friend that had moved to South America. It wasn't until I finally emailed her back asking her who she was and why I was receiving emails from her. I found out that the grade levels for schools were different, her husband was rarely home because of traveling for work, and that she was getting a realtor license. Our friend in common had sent us both an email and she had inadvertently added my email to her address book. So when she sent out emails to all, I was receiving them.

You have really got to be careful in this day and age of technology.

[Andra]

I had something similar happen to me with another company and it turned out to be a database glitch. I was receiving e-mails addressed to "Judy" for about a week. Then I received an apology letter from the company explaining they had had a problem with their database.

Or another possibility is that someone has a similar name and has an e-mail address that is one letter off from yours. I had this problem with my college e-mail. It was my full name with middle initial. I always thought my name was unique too as it is very difficult for most people to pronounce. Well, it turned out someone else on the other side of the country had my name with a different middle initial. She got e-mail from my mom one time and e-mailed her back saying she had the wrong address. I was getting e-mail for her and she was getting e-mail for me. I have a different address now.