If you can answer ‘yes’ to all of the above, then don’t read any further. On the other hand, if you want to avoid some deadly sins that cause unnecessary grief with email, read on. After you’ve read it – spread the message.

You’ve no doubt seen them. Tell everyone you know about a telephone scam, or a nasty virus or even those that promise you prize money from Bill Gates. So far, I haven’t come across one message that is genuine, they are usually a hoax or misguided, or both. Sometimes they claim to have originated in some health department, or the police, or Microsoft/Symantec etc. Still all hoaxes.

Watch out for the virus warnings that tell you to delete a file on your computer too. It’s most likely to be a useful system file that you end up deleting!

Add to this sin, the amazing photographs that get sent around, like the giant cat or the shark leaping out of the water to grab a man dangling from a helicopter. Most of these are faked photographs.

Generally, all you are doing is adding to the clogged up mail system.

What if you think it might be true?

Check it out first. These sites will usually have information about messages that are circulated so freely. Copy and paste a phrase or the title from the message (try more than one option if you don’t get a result) into the search facility on the site.