Do not open that attachment! By Peter M. Abraham September 2003 Don't open that attachment!  Do not even preview messages in your mail box folders! More and more personal computers and local area networks are being infected because readers make two very common mistakes: You preview your messages in a preview panel (sometimes known as a preview pane).   You open attachments. You must start becoming more diligent about protecting your personal computer and any network you may connect with over time. The latest trojan masquerades as an email from Microsoft Corporation telling you to update your personal computer.  Don't buy it!  Don't open it!  Don't preview it!   Delete it! While our Parallels H-Sphere mail server has anti-virus scanning, and has been set up to block common virus attachment types, you must also exercise due diligence.  Don't take things for granted, be on guard. Ask yourself the following questions before even considering to open an attachment: Do you know the sender?   Does the subject line make sense?  Would the sender use such a subject line?  Have they used such a subject line in the past?   Where you expecting them to send you an attachment?  If you were expecting them to send you an attachment, does the type of attachment match what you expected?  When it doubt, call them to verify. If you are not sure what will happen if you open an attachment or click on a link, then don't do it! Some of you by now are asking why not use the preview panel / pane? Because more and more trojan, worm, and virus authors are counting on you to preview a message; they are starting to use ActiveX application which can run in an email. Please be safe and diligent in reading your email.