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Universal Service
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E-Mail Scam
Bogus Coca-Cola Sweepstakes Promises Car and Cash
PRTC Announcements
FREE T-Shirt, One Month Voice Mail FREE, & PRTC F-Secure Internet
Security
Ask The Help Desk
Why Do I Receive Red X's Within Empty Boxes In Some E-mail Messages?
Sites Of The Month
Great Sites To Check Out In January!
Short Tutorial
Attaching Files (Attachments) To E-mail Messages
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January 2007
Just 4
PRTC Internet Subscribers
Happy New Year to you! This January eNewsletter is designed to help you
start 2007 with new ways to boost your Internet knowledge. You'll get a
"heads up" about a phishing scam using a bogus Coca-Cola car and cash
sweepstakes. You'll learn how to attach files to e-mail messages, and
why you sometimes receive e-mail messages containing those little red
X's in boxes. Plus, you'll get our picks for helpful sites including one
to help you find your risk for major diseases, one to help you connect
with charities, and one to help you catch a glimpse of your favorite
stars.
The goal of each of our monthly eNewsletters is to keep our subscribers
informed regarding their Internet connection and to improve their
Internet experience. To meet this goal, each monthly newsletter will
usually contain information related to:
- Warnings on a recent virus, e-mail hoax or security issue that
may affect you
- An update on new services and other local interests
- An answer to a frequently asked Internet related question
- Some fun, seasonal websites to check out
- A short, step-by-step tutorial on an e-mail or browser related
task
We think you'll find the information contained in this newsletter to be
a valuable tool for enhancing your Internet experience. If, however,
you'd prefer not to receive these bulletins on a monthly basis, click
HERE.
To see what's inside this issue, take a look at the index to the left
and thanks for reading!
- The Peoples Rural Telephone Cooperative Team
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E-Mail Scam
- Bogus Coca-Cola Sweepstakes Promises Car and Cash
It may look like
an e-mail from Coca-Cola but it's definitely not "The Real Thing." There's an
e-mail in circulation, allegedly from a Hong Kong-based Coca-Cola sales and
marketing manager, that promotes a sweepstakes to win a Mercedes-Benz ML Jeep
convertible and $800,000 cash. The problem? There is no such sweepstakes and
there is no such car as a Mercedes-Benz ML Jeep convertible. It's a phishing
expedition, using the trusted Coca-Cola brand as bait, designed to obtain
personal and financial information from victims.
It used to be that such hoaxes only hijacked the names of banking institutions
or services like PayPal and eBay. But now non-financial consumer brands, such as
the soft drink giant, are being used without permission by online scammers. On
their website, the Coca-Cola Company states they are "... in no way associated
with these e-mails or programs. We are not a sponsor and our name and trademarks
are used here without permission."
If you receive an e-mail like the one described above, you have a couple of
options. You can do nothing and simply delete the message. (Do not reply to it
or unsubscribe.) Or you can report the suspicious e-mail to the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) at http://www.ftc.gov.
As always, you need to be aware of the telltale signs of phishing. According to
PhishTank.com, a collaborative clearinghouse for data and information about
phishing on the Internet, look for the following signs:
- Generic greeting that doesn't use your name
- Link to a website that doesn't start with "https" (The "s" stands for
secure.)
- Request for personal information like account numbers
- Sense of urgency that pressures you to act quickly
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PRTC Announcements
- FREE T-Shirt, One Month Voice Mail FREE, & PRTC F-Secure Internet Security
FREE T-SHIRT - Place your paid ad on Peoples
Telecom CH9 today!
For Sale, Birthdays, Anniversaries, Events, & Don't forget those Business
Ads!
Print this ad and present it when you pay for your Peoples Telecom Channel 9
advertisement and we will give you a FREE T-Shirt!
Hurry! Offer expires January 31st, 2007
One Month Free - Sign up for PRTC's VOICE
MAIL SERVICE!
Sign up for VOICE MAIL from PRTC and we will let you try it for one month for
FREE plus you will receive FREE ACTIVATION!
With PRTC Voice Mail you can have all of the features of the best answering
system with no equipment to buy or maintain. Simply sign up by
email or call 287-7101 or 593-5000. Use
any phone in your home to access your voice messages. You can also access your
messages when away from home by dialing 287-4900.
PRTC Voice Mail is only $3.95 per month
Hurry! Offer expires January 31st, 2007
PRTC F-Secure Internet Security -
All-in-one data security solution for your PC!
PRTC F-Secure Internet Security with integrated antivirus, anti-spyware
and firewall functions provides your home and small office computer with the
best protection against hackers, viruses, spy-ware and even stealth threats that
use special rootkit-techniques. Parental Control with a web surfing time lock
enables parents to have full control over Internet usage of their children.
Download the all in one data security solution for your PC!
PRTC F-Secure Internet Security provide maintenance-free, easy-to-use protection
against viruses and hackers. Coupled with the industry's fastest update services
and the most powerful personal firewall, they prevent intrusions and keep your
computer virus free at all times. The intuitive user interfaces are extremely
easy to use, but yet offer a rich set of features for advanced users.
With PRTC F-Secure Anti-Virus, viruses, worms, and spyware, attacking via
e-mail, web, floppy disks and CD-ROMs are stopped in real-time. Thus, the
program enables you to surf the Internet, open e-mail attachments and use your
computer without fear of any virus infections.
PRTC F-Secure Internet Security protects you not only against viruses and
spyware, but also against hackers when you are connected to the Internet. The
program enables you to surf the Internet without the fear of viruses infecting
your computer and hackers stealing your private information. In addition, your
computer cannot be misused for illegal operations.
Most people are familiar with freeware, shareware, cookies, media players,
interactive content, and file sharing. What they may not realize is that some of
the aforementioned may contain code or components that allow the developers of
these applications and tools to actually collect and disseminate information
about those using them. PRTC F-Secure Anti-Spyware protects your privacy and
removes these data tracking components from your personal computer.
To be able to use PRTC F-Secure Internet Security 2006 your PC needs to meet the
following system requirements:
Processor: Minimum Intel Pentium 600 MHz
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
Memory:
- Windows 98/ME - Minimum 128 MB RAM
- Windows 2000/XP - Minimum 256 MB RAM
Disk Space: Maximum 320 MB during installation
Browser: Minimum Internet Explorer 5.0
CD-ROM and Internet connection
Simply sign up by email or call 287-7101
or 593-5000.
Back to Top
Ask The Help Desk - Why
Do I Receive Red X's Within Empty Boxes In Some E-mail Messages?
Question: Why
do I sometimes receive e-mail messages that contain an empty box with a red "X"
within the message pane rather than a picture? My friends are having the same
problem.
Answer: Graphics and photos contained within an e-mail message are often
not "stored" within the e-mail message itself but rather on a remote Web server
(computer). If the message you receive is in an HTML format (supposed to have
graphics or photos as part of the message) and a little box with a red "X" shows
up instead of the image, there may be a broken connection somewhere between the
image link within the e-mail message and the remote Web server where the image
is actually stored.
What causes a broken connection? There could be a number of reasons including:
- A typo by the person who keyed in the Web address of the image's server.
When this occurs, the request for the image goes to a server location where
no image exists. It is similar to looking for a home at 1500 Peach Street
when the correct address is 1500 Peach Avenue.
- Something on the Web server changed before you downloaded the e-mail.
The graphic was eliminated, its name changed, or it was stored in a
different folder, which changed its path.
- A power outage occurred somewhere between your computer and the location
of the image's Web server.
- You've downloaded your e-mail and then closed your Internet connection
to review your messages. If images within any of your incoming e-mail
messages are stored at a remote server location, your computer will not be
able to access them since you are no longer connected to the Internet.
- Newer versions of Microsoft e-mail client software (i.e. Outlook
Express, Outlook, and Entourage) block graphics from appearing automatically
in HTML e-mail messages and, of course, the red boxes show up in their
place. (Click on "Download Pictures" at the top of the e-mail and the
pictures will appear.) Note: Different e-mail clients and Web browsers use
different symbols for a broken graphic link. For instance, Apple's Safari
Web browser uses a blue box with a question mark symbol.
Back to Top
Great Sites To Check Out This Month
What's Your
Health Risk?
http://www.yourdiseaserisk.harvard.edu - One way to take better care
of your health in 2007 is to educate yourself about your disease risks. This
site, developed over the past ten years by the Harvard Center for Cancer
Prevention, can help you discover your risk of developing five important
diseases — cancer, diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis, and stroke. Simply
answer questions about your health, background, and lifestyle with easy-to-use
interactive tools and get personalized tips for preventing disease. Knowledge is
power and Your Disease Risk gives you the knowledge you need to make smarter,
healthier choices.
Track The Travels Of $10s And $20s
http://WheresGeorge.com - Ever
wondered where your paper money goes after it leaves your wallet at the checkout
counter? Well a guy by the name of Hank Eskin was so curious that he started a
website in 1998 called WheresGeorge.com
so he and others could track the travels of U.S. currency. All you need to do is
enter the denomination, series, and serial number of any U.S. dollar bill, as
well as your current zip code. The site will then follow the movement of that
bill, giving you the average speed in miles per day and the actual travel time
between exchanges of the currency.
Stargazing
http://seeing-stars.com/Awards/ -
Hollywood's numerous awards ceremonies are in full swing with the Grammy Awards
and Academy Awards in February and the excitement continuing until the Emmy's in
June. If you've always dreamed of seeing your favorite stars in person,
seeing-stars.com is your insider's guide to making it happen. Here you can find
out how to catch a glimpse of the stars as they arrive in their limos, sit in
the audience of the American Music Awards, or even watch an actor get his star
on the Walk of Fame. If you're really starstruck, check out this site's pages on
where the stars live, shop, play, and dine — and even where they're buried.
Give It A Try
http://justgive.org - If one of your New
Year's resolutions is to expand your charitable giving, give this unique site a
try. JustGive is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect people
with the charities and causes they care about and to increase overall giving.
They'll help you find the charities most meaningful to you from more than
1,000,000 nonprofits. You can also buy a charity gift certificate, start a
charity wedding registry, track your donations, and get a tax summary at the end
of the year.
Resolutions Resource
http://firstgov.gov/Citizen/Topics/New_Years_Resolutions.shtml - Let's
face it — most of us make similar New Year's resolutions year after year, from
the ever-popular health goals of losing weight or quitting smoking to the
financially motivated ones like paying off debt or getting a better job. This
Web portal provides handy information to help you succeed this year with 13 of
the most common resolutions. All the information and ideas you need to develop
your self-improvement plans are right here. (The hard part is simply following
through on the work.) Good luck!
Back to Top
Short Tutorial - Attaching
Files (Attachments) To E-mail Messages
Not sure how to
attach files to e-mail messages? Follow the steps below and you'll be a pro in
no time!
Adding Attachments Using Outlook Express 6 On Windows XP SP2
- With Outlook Express open, create a new e-mail message. Prepare it for
sending by filling in the recipient's address, the subject, and the body of
your message.
- Click your cursor arrow on the "Attach" button in the toolbar. (It looks
like a paper clip.) The "Insert Attachment" dialog box will appear.
(Alternately, you can click on "Insert" in the menu bar and select "File
Attachment" from the drop-down menu to open the "Insert Attachment" dialog
box.)
- Click on the drop-down arrow next to the "Look-in" field and select the
directory where the file you want to attach is located.
- Once the file you want to attach shows up in the main part of the
window, click on it to highlight it. (Hold the shift key down while clicking
to highlight multiple files.) Then click the "Attach" button.
- The file you selected to attach should now show up in an "Attach" field
below the "Subject" line field. If you want to attach additional files to
the same e-mail, begin with Step 1 again. Click on the "Send" button to mail
the message with the attachment(s).
Adding Attachments Using Thunderbird 1.5 On Windows XP SP2 And Mac OS X 10.4
- With Thunderbird open, create a new e-mail message. Prepare it for
sending by filling in the recipient's address, the subject, and the body of
your message.
- Click your cursor arrow on the "Attach" button in the toolbar. (It looks
like a paper clip.) The "Attach File(s)" dialog box will appear.
- Browse to the file you would like to attach by clicking on the drop-down
arrow next to the "Look-in" field. Select the directory where the file you
want to attach is located.
- Once you find the file you want to attach, click on it to highlight it.
(Hold the shift key down while clicking to highlight multiple files.) Then
click the "Open" button.
- The file you selected to attach should now show up in the "Attachments"
field to the right of your message's address info and subject line. If you
want to attach additional files to the same e-mail, begin with Step 1 again.
Click on the "Send" button to mail the message with the attachment(s).
Adding Attachments Using Netscape 7.2 Mail On Windows XP SP2 And Mac OS X
10.4
- With Netscape Mail open, create a new e-mail message. Prepare it for
sending by filling in the recipient's address, the subject, and the body of
your message.
- Click your cursor arrow on the "Attach" button in the toolbar. (It looks
like a paper clip.) The "Attach File(s)" dialog box will appear.
- Browse to the file you would like to attach by clicking on the drop-down
arrow next to the "Look-in" field. Select the directory where the file you
want to attach is located. Note: On the Macintosh, you get what looks like a
standard Macintosh "Open" dialog box. There is no "Look-in" field.
- Once you find the file you want to attach, click on it to highlight it.
(Hold the shift key down while clicking to highlight multiple files.) Then
click the "Open" button.
- The file you selected to attach should now show up in the "Attachments"
field to the right of your message's address info and subject line. If you
want to attach additional files to the same e-mail, begin with Step 1 again.
Click on the "Send" button to mail the message with the attachment(s).
Adding Attachments Using Mail 2.1.1 On Mac OS X 10.4
- With Mail open, create a new e-mail message. Prepare it for sending by
filling in the recipient's address, the subject, and the body of your
message.
- Click your cursor arrow on the "Attach" button in the toolbar. (It looks
like a paper clip.) A standard "Open" dialog box will appear.
- Browse to the file you would like to attach.
- Once you find the file you want to attach, click on it to highlight it.
(Hold the shift key down while clicking to highlight multiple files.) If you
are sending the file to a Windows user, click in the check box next to "Send
Windows Friendly Attachments." Then click the "Choose File" button.
- The file you selected to attach should now show up in the body of your
message. If you want to attach additional files to the same e-mail, begin
with Step 1 again. Click on the "Send" button to mail the message with the
attachment(s).
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We hope you found
this newsletter to be informative. It's our way of keeping you posted on the
happenings here. If, however, you'd prefer not to receive these bulletins on a
monthly basis, click HERE.
Thanks for your business!
Best regards,
Peoples Rural Telephone
Cooperative
Peoples Rural Telephone
Hwy 421 South
McKee, KY 40447
606-287-7101
(We have used our best efforts in collecting and preparing the information
published herein. However, we do not assume, and hereby disclaim, any and all
liability for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions, whether such
errors or omissions resulted from negligence, accident, or other causes.)
©2007
Cornerstone Publishing Group Inc.
Trademarks: All brand names and product names used in this eNewsletter are trade
names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective
owners.
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