Using the internet safely: Email safety tips

The following material is also available as a fact sheet, available for download (PDF 146 KB).

Protect your email privacy

If you have internet access at home, the company providing it (e.g. Telstra BigPond or Optus) will probably have provided you with an email account. Take care if you use this email address to write any emails that you would not want anyone else to have access to.

If you do use this email address, be sure you delete any private email you write from both the "sent" and "deleted" boxes – a short cut is to hold down the 'shift' key as you delete. However, keep in mind that even if you delete your emails, copies are often kept with the internet provider, and deleted emails may be able to be recovered from your computer by an expert.

Set up a private email address

A safer option may be to set up a free email account, for example through yahoo or hotmail, which no one else knows about. Then you can read and send emails from any computer with internet access. There are a number of free email websites available. Read their terms of use to make sure they meet your needs. Yahoo is good because it allows you to store a large number of emails and attachments, and requires a password to view emails.

Setting up a Yahoo email address is easy. Go to yahoo.com.au, click on "Mail" then "Sign Up Now" and follow the prompts. If you have trouble, ask for help from a computer class teacher at your neighbourhood centre, a librarian at your local library or your social or family violence support worker.

Make sure you always sign out completely

When you are finished sending your emails from a free email account like Yahoo or Hotmail, make sure that you always sign out completely, especially if you are using the home computer.

Click "sign out" at the top of the screen, then click where circled. Then, even if someone uses the "back" button on the internet browser, or tries to use the computer's "history" or "cache" (see < hreglossary), they won't be able to read your emails.

Protect your password

Always choose an email provider that requires a password, like Yahoo or Hotmail. Choose a password that would be hard to guess, and be careful to protect it, especially if you are using your home computer. Make sure your password is not stored anywhere on the hard drive, and make sure there is NO TICK in the box 'Remember my ID on this computer'.

If you are using Hotmail, make sure you select 'Always ask for my email address and password', so your password is not automatically stored on your computer.

SAFETY TIPS

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General internet safety tips

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Glossary

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