Administrative Assistant / Secretary: The Basics of Email

Email is short for electronic mail. It involves the exchange of written messages sent over computer networks such as the Internet. In many offices, email has replaced written memos, drop-by office visits, and even phone calls. Email provides a written record of office communications. You can send messages to groups of people simultaneously, attach files, and include hyperlinks to websites. Email is one of the most popular and effective tools for communicating with others over the Internet. With email, you can send a message to anyone in the world who has email access—and, barring technical difficulties, the message will be received in a matter of minutes.

Email Accounts
An email account allows you to connect to a network and the Internet. This is done through an Internet Service Provider, or ISP. The ISP helps you get connected to the network using a dial-up telephone connection, DSL, cable modem, WiFi, or cellular connection. When you establish an account with an ISP, the ISP will provide you with the following:
- Email address. In most cases, this will be your name or nickname, followed by the @sign and an ISP identifier that will most commonly end with the extension .com or .net.
- POP server. This is the name of your incoming mail server. POP stands for Post Office Protocol. This is the ISP’s computer that receives incoming email messages addressed to you.
- SMTP server. This is the name of the outgoing mail server. SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. This is the ISP’s computer that processes the email messages you send.
- User name. This is usually the part of your name that appears in your email address before the @ sign. Some ISPs use your entire email address. The user name is used to access the ISP’s system along with your password.
- Password. This is the secret code you’ll use to keep your email private.
In many offices, an administrative assistant will obtain an email account from the company’s system administrator. This person will assist you in setting up your computer to send and receive email and will provide you with your user ID, password, and email address.

Passwords
Passwords can sometimes be case-sensitive. If your email password is all uppercase letters, you will need to press the SHIFT key while entering your password.
You should never store your password around your computer. Your password should be something that is easy to remember. If you are assigned a password that is hard to remember, change it yourself. Most email systems encourage you to change your password often. The best passwords combine letters and numbers and are at least six characters in length. Never use your name, your user name, your telephone number, your birth date, your Social Security number, or family names as passwords. Also, never use any real word that can be found in the dictionary without combining it with numbers.

Email Programs
Email can be accessed from a website. This is often called Web mail. You can also use email software provided by your ISP. However, in most businesses, the most commonly used email programs include:
- Microsoft Outlook
- Windows Live Mail
- Windows 8 Mail
- Macintosh Mail
- Google Mail (Gmail)
All email programs have similar features such as file folders for organizing mail, toolbars, a menu bar, a message list, and a message view window.

The most commonly used toolbar or menu bar commands include:
- New Message—to create a new message
- Print—to print a paper copy of a message
- Read—to view a message in a separate window
- Reply—to reply to a particular message
- Reply to All—to reply to everyone copied on a previous message
- Send and Receive—to send out mail you’ve written and receive new messages
- Forward—to send an email you’ve received to someone else
- Attachment—to send a computer file along with your email message

Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook is a more advanced email management program that is included with the Microsoft Office suite of programs. Microsoft Outlook is one of the most common email programs used by businesses today. In addition to sending and receiving email, users can also manage their personal calendar, schedule meetings with coworkers, and manage contacts. Microsoft Outlook can also be integrated with voice-mail systems so that voice messages can be retrieved and played on your computer. 

Microsoft Outlook.




Windows Live Mail.



Windows Live Mail
Windows Live Mail comes with Windows 7 and functions similarly to Outlook. Windows Live Mail includes a built-in search box that lets you search for specific content in all your email messages. There is also a junk mail filter that helps reduce the amount of spam. Figure 13-2 shows a screen image of Windows Live Mail.

Apple Macintosh Mail.



Windows 8 Mail
Windows 8 Mail comes with Windows 8 and is an app that is included as a tile on the Start Screen. 

Apple Macintosh Mail
Apple Macintosh Mail is a program that comes with the Apple OS X operating system used on Macintosh computers. Mail is a multifaceted program that allows for customizing mail messages with personalized stationary. It can be used as a memo pad and for keeping a to-do list. Incoming email messages can be easily added to a to-do list in order for you to stay organized.
Mail is a full-featured email application that includes most of the same functionality as Microsoft Outlook. Figure 13-3 shows a screen image of Macintosh Mail.

Managing Email
When you receive mail, the email program stores it in your Inbox. When you click the Inbox, you will see a list of messages you have received. When you select a message from the list, the body of the message is displayed in a window. You may read other messages by clicking on the listings in the Inbox window.
The icon to the left of a message indicates whether or not the message has been read. In Microsoft Outlook and Windows Mail, unread mail has a sealed envelope to the left of the message. When you read a message, its icon automatically changes to an open envelope.
After you have read a message, it remains in your Inbox. You can reduce the clutter in your Inbox by moving the messages to other folders. You can also use menu items to move a message to the Deleted Items folder or, once the message is highlighted, you can simply press the DELETE key.

New Mail window in Microsoft Outlook.



You can print a message by opening it and clicking the PRINT icon on the toolbar. To compose a new message, you click the NEW MAIL icon on the toolbar. A New Message window then appears. 
To send a message, click the SEND button on the toolbar. The message will be stored in the Outbox folder until you click SEND AND RECEIVE. In Lotus Notes, you have to click REPLICATE to send and receive mail.

Sending Attachments
Whenever you email a message to someone, you have the ability to send additional files along with your message as an attachment. In Microsoft Outlook, you click the ATTACH icon on the toolbar. The Insert Attachment dialog box will appear. You can navigate to the appropriate file and attach it to the email message. You’ll then see the attachment listed or shown as an icon, along with your message.
When you receive an attachment, the email program lets you know by showing you a small icon next to the message in your Inbox. In some email programs an attachment shows up as a paper clip icon. When you open the message, you will see a listing for the attachment or an icon embedded within the document. Double-clicking the icon will open the attachment file.

Reasons for Sending Attachments
There are a number of reasons one chooses to send someone an attachment. Here is a partial list of reasons:
- The recipient can use the attached file to add, edit, or make revisions.
- You need a document to arrive ready to print and distribute.
- The recipient needs the document immediately.
- You need to send a single document to many different recipients.
- The recipient is going to distribute the document to others.

Alternatives to Sending Attachments
You should avoid sending attachments when they are unnecessary. You can avoid sending attachments by:
- Cutting and pasting word-processing data into your email message.
- Placing the files on a website or File Transfer Protocol (FTP) site for downloading.
- Sending the files on a CD or DVD.
- Faxing the document.
- Printing the document and sending it via regular mail or overnight express.

Problems with Attachments
Email attachments can be big and take a long time to download if the recipient has a slow connection. There can also be translation problems when the recipient doesn’t have the right program or the correct program version for opening and using the attachment. In addition, many viruses spread across the Internet through infected attachments.

Email Protocol for Sending Attachments
Unless you send attachments to someone on a regular basis, you should always check with the recipient before sending an attachment. Make sure the person has the right software and can handle downloading the file.
When you send an attachment, use the email message as a cover letter. Explain what the attachment is and why you are sending it. You can use compression software if you are sure the recipient also has the same software. Compression software reduces the file size and download times for users with slower dial-up Internet connections.
Always keep in mind that the formatting of a document may change on the recipient’s computer. Many files, such as Microsoft Word documents, are printer-dependent. That means that their layout on the screen and on paper is dependent on what model printer is installed.
If you want to make sure a document will look the same on the screen and when printed on a recipient’s computer, use Adobe Acrobat. Adobe Acrobat uses a file format called Portable Document Format (PDF). Adobe Reader, which lets you open and read PDF files, can be downloaded for no charge from the Adobe website at www.adobe.com. To create an Acrobat document, you need to purchase Adobe Acrobat creation software. After the software is installed on your computer, you will be able to create Acrobat documents by printing your document to the PDF printer, which acts as a software-only printer connected to your system. Instead of printing your document on paper, your document is printed as a PDF file and stored on your hard drive.

Attachment Protocol for Recipients
Don’t get upset when you can’t open an attachment. When this happens, send a reply and explain the problem. If necessary, ask for word-processing documents to be saved as text or have the document printed and mailed.
You should know what kind of attachments you can open. Each program has a file extension—a dot and three characters—added to the file name. The file extension is used by a program to identify its own data files. When you examine an attached file extension, it will tell you what program is needed.

The following is a list of common file extensions and the program needed to open them:
- doc and docx—Microsoft Word
- txt—Microsoft Word, WordPad, or Notepad
- rtf—Microsoft Word
- pdf—Adobe Acrobat Reader
- xls and xlsx—Microsoft Excel
- ppt and pptx—Microsoft PowerPoint
- pps—Microsoft PowerPoint
- jpg—Windows Paint
- bmp—Windows Paint
- gif—Windows Paint
- mp3—Windows Media Player
- mov—Quicktime Player
- avi—Windows Media Player
- zip—WinZip or other compressed file
Be careful with executable file attachments. These files are actually programs that could install a virus. Executable file extensions like exe, vbs, com, drv, dll, bin, and sys can easily contain viruses. You should always use anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date. Don’t open file attachments from people you don’t know. Some viruses come embedded within legitimate files, such as Microsoft Word macro viruses. Because of this, you should always download file attachments to your hard drive and scan them with your anti-virus software before opening them.

Hyperlinks in Email Messages
There is a limit on how large of an attachment you can send with an email message. The maximum size varies depending on the recipient’s Internet service provider. One alternative to sending a file attachment is to post the file somewhere on the Internet and to send a link to the file within an email message. In most email programs, when a Web address appears in the body of a message, it shows up as a hyperlink that the recipient can click to view or download.

Organizing Your Email
When you receive messages in your email program, they automatically go to the Inbox. In time, the number of messages you receive may crowd the Inbox and make it difficult to keep track of information. You can create new folders to organize your messages. You can then drag and drop messages from the Inbox to the various folders to store and save them.
It is important for an administrative assistant to keep a good filing system for email messages. You may want to create separate file folders for projects, personnel, clients, or subjects. You can create folders within folders to further organize your messages.

Email Address Book
All email programs have an address book to help you manage your email contacts. There are two ways to generate listings for the address book: you can enter the information manually, or you can add to a list through a menu command. Once you’ve added names to your address book, you’ll want to start using it to address messages.

Signature Files
A signature file is a small text file that can be added automatically at the end of your email messages. Signature files are created in ASCII text format, which is a format that can be read by any program on any computer.
The content of this file should include your name, title, company name, address, phone, company website, and you email address.

Returned Mail
Sometimes a message you send cannot be delivered. When this happens, you will receive a message notifying you that your mail has been returned. There are a number of reasons this could happen. Often, the cause may be temporary problems with your ISP, or the host server of the intended recipient may not have been online when your message arrived. In addition, you may have made an error in the intended recipient’s address. Should a message be returned to you, read the routing information that appears at the top of the message. Verify that you sent the message to the proper address. If the problem persists, notify your ISP or the person you’re trying to send mail to.

Instant Messaging
Instant messaging is a form of rapid response email that allows a user to send multiple email messages back and forth to another person when both parties are online at the same time. Rather than sending a series of email messages that must be read and replied to individually, instant messaging allows the two users to chat with each by typing short messages to each other.
Instant messaging allows you to store a list of people whom you want to contact with instant messages. You can send a message to anyone on the list who is online.

Skype Instant Messaging.


When you send an instant message to someone, a message window opens where you and the other person can type messages that both of you can see. Figure 13-5 shows a screen capture of Skype.

There are a variety of instant messaging programs available, including:
- America Online Instant Messenger (AIM)
- Skype
- Yahoo Messenger
In addition to being able to type text messages back and forth, the most popular instant-messaging software allows for sending files, images, video, and sounds.

Email Protocol for Administrative Assistants
Since email is a written form of communication, you should follow proper email protocols in order to look professional. You can do this by using proper language and accepted rules.

Addressing Your Email
To send a message to someone, enter his or her email address in the To field. Always verify the correct email address of a recipient. Sending just one email to the wrong person could be a disaster. If a person is already in your address book, many programs fill in the address automatically when you click on the name.
The CC field is for “carbon” copies. You should add recipients to this field when you want them to have a copy of a message but do not need a response from them. You should use this field sparingly, unless you are certain the recipient knows why he or she is receiving a copy of the message. Using this field can be confusing, since many people consider CC messages as FYI (for your information).
The BCC field is for blind “carbon” copies. When you add a recipient to this field, any recipients in the To or CC field will not know the person in the BCC field was copied. In most cases, you should not use the BCC field to send secret messages behind someone’s back. This can be an email etiquette disaster. Instead, use the BCC field to send messages to a list of people in order to keep their email addresses private.

Subject Line
Most email recipients decide when and whether to read a message based on the subject line. Always add a subject to the subject line. Some computer novices and ultra-busy executives forget to add a subject line. Even if you have to reply to a message you receive that does not have a subject line, always add one yourself.
Keep your subject short. Many email programs limit the subject line message to forty characters or fewer. Avoid starting your subject out with “RE.” Many programs automatically insert “RE:” in the subject line when you reply to a message. You may want to capitalize the subject like a book title; that is, capitalize the first letter of each word except for articles and infinitives.
Always be very specific with your subject lines. A subject like “ISS Meeting on Tuesday” is better than “Meeting.” Make the subject meaningful. If the message generates a back-and-forth conversation, you’ll know what the message is about after you received it for the third time.

Message Greetings
Email should always have a personal greeting and include customized information. With email, there’s no need for the inside address, date, and all the normal things that go into a business letter. However, standard business letter protocol still applies with email.
If this is the first time you have sent an email to a recipient, introduce yourself and explain why you are writing. Be respectful of people you don’t know.

Body of the Message
Be respectful of the recipient’s time. Keep your messages short. If one sentence will do the job, use one sentence. If you have to switch subjects, it’s best to send a separate email so it can be filed separately.
Use the active rather than passive voice in your message. In the active voice, the speaker (or subject of the sentence) is the “doer” of the action being described. In the passive voice, the speaker (or subject) is the recipient of the action. For example, an expression in active voice is: “The committee drafted documents.” Alternatively, this idea expressed in the passive voice would be: “Documents were drafted by the committee.” Active voice is more direct and more easily understood.
Keep your language gender-neutral. Avoid using sexist language such as, “The salesman should configure his email program.” Instead, you could say: “The sales person should configure the email program.”
If you make a request in an email message, don’t forget to add “please” to your request. If someone does something for you, a polite “thank you” is always nice.
Always spell-check your messages. Most email programs have a built-in spell-check feature. Always proofread your messages before you send them. Many people don’t bother to read their messages before they send them, and it shows. Most spelling and grammar errors can be eliminated if you read your messages before clicking SEND.
You can use common abbreviations and acronyms in your business emails if you are certain the recipient understands them.
Avoid using all capital letters in the body of your message. In Internet tradition, this means yelling. However, if you need to emphasize a word—such as DANGER or WARNING—that’s okay.

HTML Format Versus Plain Text
You can choose whether to send your messages in HTML format or plain text. The HTML format allows you to format your message just like word processing; however, the recipient must be using an email program that recognizes HTML format. Within an office where everyone is using the same email program, such as Microsoft Outlook, it’s okay to send formatted messages using HTML format. With plain text messages, all formatting information is disregarded.
For external emails, you should assume that the recipient is using a plain text email system.

Therefore, when you send external emails, you should not use:
- Italics
- Bold
- Underlining
- Multiple colored or sized fonts Bullets
- Any special symbols or fonts
- Tabs
- Spacing to indent paragraphs
Even for internal emails, you should refrain from formatting your email to look like a desktop publishing job. Your message format should be basic and easy to read. Use paragraphs, and double-space between them. Don’t double-space after periods. Most people now use a publishing style that requires only one space after a period.

Emoticons
Emoticons are little sideways faces created using punctuation marks. For example, the emoticon :-) means smile. Emoticons are often used to signal to your reader that you are being sarcastic or making a statement with a tongue-in-cheek attitude. They can also be used to soften a message.
Use emoticons sparingly. They should be avoided at work.

Sign-Offs
For business email, you should always end your message with a formal sign-off. Sincerely, regards, or best wishes, followed by your name, are the best salutations for formal messages. For informal communications, you can sign off with just your name. For external emails, always include your contact information: name, title, company name, address, email address, and phone and fax numbers. Alternatively, include your contact information in your signature file.

When to Respond to Emails
In deciding how often to read and respond to email, you must balance your workload between productive work and spending all day doing email. Of course, your manager or a customer should get a quicker response than someone else if you are busy.
With most emails personally addressed to you, you should respond by the end of the business day. Even if the email requires that you perform a task or do some research, you should let the sender know you got the message and when he or she can expect you to complete the task.
You can use templates for frequently asked questions, such as directions to your office. You can create a template message in your word processor and cut and paste it into your email message.
When you send email to external recipients, you should not expect a reply as quickly as you would with an internal email. Unless a message is urgent, you should wait a few days, even up to a week, before resending the message. Remember, if a message is urgent, you can always call on the phone.

Messages Sent to the Wrong Address
If you ever receive an email message by mistake, send a reply to the sender along with a copy of the message, and let the sender know that he or she used the wrong email address. Of course, this does not apply to any junk emails you may receive.

Quoting from a Previous Email
When you reply to a previous email, send a copy of the previous message or a few lines as a quote. This will help the recipient know to which message you are replying. Most email programs automatically copy the previous message if you click REPLY on the toolbar. You have the option of including the entire message or deleting everything except the section you want to reference. You should quote when you are answering a question, when you are commenting on a point made in a previous email, or when you think it will be helpful. If you use selective quoting, you can mark the previous message by using two “less than” symbols (<<) and two “greater than” symbols (>>) on each side of the quote.
When you include a copy of a previous message or a quote, always type your message above the quote or copy. This will prevent the recipient from having to scroll down to find your message.

Handling Email Overload
When you find your Inbox swamped with messages, answer the most recent messages first. This will help you avoid answering questions or dealing with issues that may have already been resolved. In addition, by answering the most recent messages first, you maximize your appearance of promptness.
Don’t spend all day reading and replying to email. You should read and respond to all non-urgent messages at one time—perhaps after lunch or at the end of the business day. File or delete messages you have already read and responded to. This will reduce the clutter in your Inbox.

Filtering Messages
There are filters built in to email programs like Microsoft Outlook. Filters allow you to sort messages directly to specific file folders, bypassing your Inbox. Filters do take some time to set up, but they are well worth the time.

Some ideas for filters include separating the following:
- Mail from particular people
- Internal email from external email
- Messages that do not include your company’s domain name
- Messages where your email address is in the CC or BCC field
- Messages from mailing lists or newsgroups
- Personal email from family and friends

Urgent Messages
You should mark a message as “urgent” or “high priority” only when it really is. Never cry wolf with your email by getting in the habit of marking all your messages “urgent.” In fact, when you have an urgent message to send, you should consider whether email is the best medium for the message. Perhaps a telephone call would be more effective.

Return Receipt
On an internal email system, you can choose whether to be notified via email when a recipient receives your message. When the message is read, you get a read receipt.
Return receipts are usually not supported for external emails sent over the Internet. In many cases, the receipt tells you only that the message made it to the recipient’s email server. There are delivery receipt options in Microsoft Outlook that give the recipient the option of acknowledging the delivery of the message.
Some email programs allow you to read a message in a preview window without actually opening the message. If the recipient never actually opens and reads your message, you won’t get a return receipt.
If you send a message with a return receipt and do not get a receipt, or if you request something and do not get a response, send out a reminder message. For internal messages, give the recipient until the end of the day to respond. For external messages, give the recipient several days to a week to respond.

Rules for Forwarding Messages
Forwarding a message can be both good and bad. It’s good because it allows you to easily share information with others. It’s bad because any message you forward may end up becoming public.
When is it okay to forward messages? Not as often as most people think. Unless a person gives you permission to forward a message, you should not forward it. There may be many reasons someone would not want his or her message forwarded. The message may be for you only, the tone might not be appropriate for others, or the sender may not want to share his or her email address.
If you don’t want a message you send to be forwarded to someone else, how should you let the recipient know? Make it clear that the message is just for him or her.
Before forwarding a message that contains a history of replies, check to make sure that everything in the message is appropriate before you forward. Remove any unnecessary or sensitive content.
Always keep in mind that email is not private. Anything you write might be forwarded. Not everyone follows the correct protocols. One of the best rules to follow for email communication is to not write anything in an email that you would not want someone else to read.
You should never forward jokes and chain letters to anyone at work. You never know when someone might find them offensive. However, if you receive a lot of forwarded messages, you can set up a filter that looks for messages with FW on the subject line.
Is it necessary to reply to forwarded messages? The answer is usually no, unless you find that there is something in the message that specifically applies to you or one of your responsibilities.

Mass Mailings
Any time you need to send a single message to a group of people, you can always just add all of the addresses to the To and CC fields. However, this means you are sharing everyone’s email address with everyone on the list. To avoid this, you can either create a group or use the BCC field. When you use the BCC field, none of the email addresses are revealed. You do need to put at least one email address in the To field; however, that can always be your own email address.
You should never use the BCC field to send a message behind someone’s back. This is considered impolite.

Creating a Group
Many email programs like Microsoft Outlook will allow you to create a group of email addresses from your address book and save the list with a unique name. When you send a message to the group, everyone in the list receives the message.
Some company email systems have preconfigured groups. Be careful when sending emails to these groups. Know who these individuals are before you include them in a mass mailing.

Reply to All
If you receive a mass mailing and click REPLY TO ALL, everyone on the list will get a copy of your reply. This can be dangerous if done by mistake. When replying to a message, always make sure you click REPLY rather than REPLY TO ALL unless you really do intend to send a reply to everyone on the list.
Some email programs will allow you to set a preference that will prompt you when you click REPLY TO ALL. This feature helps prevent clicking REPLY TO ALL by mistake.

General Email Guidelines for Business
Email is not always the best medium for a message. Sometimes it is best to use the telephone or speak with a coworker in person rather than sending an email message.
Email is appropriate in business communications for things like directions, requests, information to be saved, information to be copied, and company-wide announcements.

What Messages Are Inappropriate for Business Email?
The following are examples of situations where email is an inappropriate medium for communication:
- Thank you notes
- Long memos
- Yes or no answers
- Job praise
- Telling your boss you are sick
- Requests for raises, promotions, or resignations
- Jokes
- Flirting
- Gossip
- Anything illegal or unethical

The Tone of Your Email at Work
When you email your boss, do not use a casual tone, even if you are friends. Keep your emails businesslike. You never know when your boss may need to forward one of your messages to a superior.
Never write an email when you are angry. Take time to calm down before you fire off a message you’ll later regret.

International Email
There are special rules that apply to international business emails. Start by addressing the recipient as Mr. or Ms. and his or her surname. Do not use the recipient’s first name. Keep the tone of your email formal, and avoid humor that might be misunderstood. Convert all your measurements to metric, and be careful about calendar dates. The date 2/06/17 means June 2, 2017 in Europe, not February 6, 2017. To be clear, always write out the month, day, and year.
If your message concerns money, be specific about what currency you are talking about. If you ask the international recipient to call you, provide him or her with the appropriate telephone country code. Also watch out for time-zone confusion. If you say you’ll call the recipient at 5 p.m., make sure you are clear about whose 5 p.m. you mean.

Auto Respond Messages
When you are out of the office for longer than one business day and will not be able to respond to your emails, you should use an out-of-office notice that auto responds to your emails. An auto-respond message can be set up in your email program. It will automatically send a message to anyone who sends you a message while you are away. Your auto-respond message can inform the senders that you are away and will respond to their emails at a specific time when you return.

Email Hoaxes
From time to time you may receive forwarded hoaxes. You should be suspicious of any message that says, “Forward this to all your friends.” Many times, these chain letters are simply ways to harvest email addresses for junk emailers.
If you are suspicious that a message may be a hoax, you can check the following websites dedicated to exposing Web-related hoaxes:
- urbanlegends.about.com
- hoaxbusters.ciac.org
You can also do a search of the particular message content in Yahoo.com or Google.com.

Spam
Spam is another word for junk email. These are the unsolicited sales offers and scams that try to trick the unsuspecting email user. Many Internet Service Providers have filters that attempt to eliminate spam; however, many spam messages still slip through. You can reduce the amount of spam you receive by setting up filters that look for subject line phrases like free, hot, money, hi, hello, and info. You should also report any spam messages to your Internet Service Provider. You can also report spammers to the U.S. government’s Federal Trade Commission by sending an email to [email protected] or fill out a complaint form at www.ftc.gov.
Never reply to spam. This will cause you to receive even more, because now the junk emailer will know your email address is real. Also, never click on any Web links in a spam message or call any telephone numbers listed.

Email Viruses
There are many different types of computer viruses that spread via email. These viruses can clog up your hard drive and slow down your computer, destroy files, compromise access to your computer, and automatically spread viruses to other computers.
One of the most common ways to get a computer virus is from an email attachment. The attached file is either infected or is itself a virus. You should always use anti-virus software and keep it updated. Anytime you receive a file attachment, download it and scan it with your anti-virus software.

Email Privacy
Email is not private. Not only may your messages be forwarded to others, but your company has the right to read anything you write or receive via email. Because your employer pays for the computer, Internet connection, and your time, your business email account belongs to the company. Even if you delete email, it is still available for a company to view. The same rules apply for Web surfing and telephone usage.