Topic: Has my email been hacked?

[Clark Kent]

this has been happening repeatedly lately- I go throguh my spam folder, and fine delivery status notifcations for emails I didn't send.  My original thought is that someone simply spoofed my email, but on a hunch I go into my sent items folder, and sure enough, there are spam emails sitting in my sent items folder.  My understanding is that this can't happen unless someone has my email password and logs in to my account.  I've changed my email address several times over the last few weeks, using very strong passwords, but it continues. 

Have I been hacked?  Is there a way to block access once and for al, or will I have to abandon my email account?  If it is of any help, I'm using gmail, the password for my emails is only on one computer (my iBook G4) and now my new iPod touch.  I did a fresh format and install in november and have gone to lengths to keep the computer in safe zones on the internet as well as password protect everything and use the firewall.

[Tus-XC]

you said the PW is on your computer... as in stored in IE so that when you go to gmail it fills the stuff in for ya?  My best guess you you might have some crud on your computer... when was the last time you ran adaware (or something like that)?  Also by strong password are we talking something along the lines of AAaa11!! in type?  Are you using gmail via web interface or via e-mail software on your computer?

[Clark Kent]

you said the PW is on your computer... as in stored in IE so that when you go to gmail it fills the stuff in for ya?  My best guess you you might have some crud on your computer... when was the last time you ran adaware (or something like that)?  Also by strong password are we talking something along the lines of AAaa11!! in type?  Are you using gmail via web interface or via e-mail software on your computer?

it's a a kind of l33t speak password.  I access the email through an application on my computer.  I don't store the password in my web browser, and I use Safari, not IE.

[Don Karnage]

what email account is doing that?

from you're isp or like yahoo?

[The Bar-Abbas Anomaly]

 
I think that the only way spam would show up in your outbox is if someone was actually logging into your account and sending them, but that is a very inefficient way to send spam...

In any event, I would definitely contact Gmail tech support and see what they have to say about it.

[Dash Jones]

Could be, or could be that someone is spoofing your email, or using it to spoof other accounts.  One typical trick used to be to source a hack through someone else's computer, which may or may not utilize an account email if they have one connected to their ISP.  I think that's also one weakness of outlook that still hasn't actually been closed, as that would kill Outlook's useability as email.  It's directly related to Windows though, so if you aren't running Windows it probably doesn't apply.

If I remember correctly, people used to do that all that time.