Having a Paranoia Attack-Please Help.

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 10:46 AM

I get those spam emails from porn sites despite having no idea how there sites got my email and they promptly get deleted by me.

There was an email i got last night and it was titled something like "DowNloAd Free...." and i was like "Download what?" so i clicked on it and it was like "Download free mov..ie" and it had all these other email addresses in it i didnt even recognise and there was this suspect looking link so i deleted it.

Could opening that email get me into trouble,i get all paranoid about it and very irrational about it getting me into trouble as i dont like these emails getting spammed to me and i dont know what opening one would do,what kind of email was that??

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 01:11 PM

Can anyone help?

Horizon · 27-01-2011, 01:31 PM

The only thing I can tell you is not to open any email unless it's from someone you know. That's just a general common sense rule to keep in mind.
I do not know the implications of you opening the email. But now you know not to do so in the future.

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Facet

The only thing I can tell you is not to open any email unless it's from someone you know. That's just a general common sense rule to keep in mind.
I do not know the implications of you opening the email. But now you know not to do so in the future.

Hopefully not a virus!

Horizon · 27-01-2011, 01:43 PM

Do a security scan of your computer then to see if it detects any viruses or however that works.

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 01:47 PM

It's kinda making my ocd go off the charts:(

Horizon · 27-01-2011, 01:48 PM

How so?

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 01:58 PM

Just all irrational that i'll get into trouble with the law cos i clicked on the email and that if it was a suss link that was in the email and as i said i did click on that link,it got delted promptly,having ocd is no fun.

Horizon · 27-01-2011, 02:02 PM

I don't think the law is sitting around waiting to see people click on spam links. You made a mistake by clicking on it but you did not do anything intentionally wrong. I'd think the worst that would happen is a virus, realistically, so get that checked.
I know having OCD is no "fun", but you need to learn to challenge your faulty thinking.

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Facet

I don't think the law is sitting around waiting to see people click on spam links. You made a mistake by clicking on it but you did not do anything intentionally wrong. I'd think the worst that would happen is a virus, realistically, so get that checked.
I know having OCD is no "fun", but you need to learn to challenge your faulty thinking.

Thanks for your help, things like this "trigger" my ocd thinking that link could be to something illiegal,puts my ocd off the charts

.

Kitkat :) · 27-01-2011, 04:50 PM

I know how you feel, on my Tumblr I got something that said people had exposed/chatting crap about me on some website. It turns out it is just a hoax but I got overly paranoid about whether people were talking about me on the internet. I googled it and saw loads of other people have had this spam too.

The point is (after a bit of waffling), unless you know the sender don't open the e-mail - as said before it could contain a virus. I don't know how they can get your e-mail address, but that's the wonders of the internet - anyone who looks hard enough can find anything, which is how internet fraud takes place.

Hope you're okay.

roiben · 27-01-2011, 09:59 PM

I am sorry to hear that this is making you stress at the moment.
You have done nothing wrong. There is no law to make it illegal to open an e-mail, regardless of who it is from. The law only pertains to what one may choose to do after that point - e.g if they download an illicit movie or pass the message on to someone else to encourage them to download said movie. Which you chose not to do.
Opening the e-mail can only have put you at risk of a virus and, as you did not then select any of the links, it is less likely to be a serious virus. A simple scan using your computer software should be able to clear up whether this has happened - and the chances are, it will not have.

Assuming you have run a virus scan and your computer is clear, it may be wise to take a few moments to sit down and rationalise your thought process. Write down what happened and what your thoughts were. Then, go through those thoughts and look at them rationally. If you keep this note, you can refer to it the next time something similar happens and have the rational cue already written out for you.
I hope you are feeling less stressed now.
Be gentle with yourself.

Roiben x

worriedson · 27-01-2011, 10:42 PM

Thanks for your support, i didnt click on the link so all is ok, it's my other ocd attack that's giving me hell now.

roiben · 28-01-2011, 02:59 PM

Found and commented on your other thread...

Roiben