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I set up a gmail account, probably 5 or so years ago "mynameandmrsname@gmail.com" and had it forward any emails to my own gmail account.
Havnt logged into the joint gmail account for 5+ years but now I am suddenly getting notifications sent to it from places like Gumtree & "Metro Meets", saying thank you for my posting, activate your listing etc etc.
is this just spam or has this joint account been hacked/cloned? if so what can i do about it?
Gumtree is part of the google empire now I believe. Probably just marketing hoping you'll click on the links and sign up for real. Change your passwords and etc and check for spyware and all that before you do anything
Think about it, anyone can put any email address into any site they want. Someone has probably just mistyped their own address when entering their details somewhere and you've ended up with the their junkmail. Unless emails in your inbox are vanishing or getting marked read or something there is no need to worry.
I find if you got in early, it's inevitable that later people will have tried for the name you have but ended up with some variation of it (a number on the end, etc).
Some people are crap at remembering that though, so use the wrong one (yours) for forms and giving out to people. I get a couple of emails a week that will be for one of about a dozen people who do that. Info about some church events, an american Toyota dealer sending me service reminders and offering to buy my car back, and for the last 3 years I've been informed that my application for a New Mexico hunting licence was successful. Oh, and once got an inexplicable series of pics taken by a guy in front of a mirror, holding... himself. Bizarre.
People mistype email addresses a lot - if they sign up and don't hear anything back they'll just redo it later. Not much to worry about.
ps. if you're concerned about possible access by someone else, at the bottom of each page in gmail there's a "last account activity" text with a details link. Follow that and it'll show where your account was accessed from and when.
Mate of mine has a reasonably unobscure name, and keeps getting emails from people wanting to get hold of his namesakes. One of them keeps using it for web page signups, so he's currently got someone else's Play account details. Anyone want any DVDs? (-: My mate closed the account, and the dweeb created another one, still using my mate's email address. There's no helping some people.
An example,
"Hi Chris
Got this list from Inlec for the recalibration of the electrical testers
Do you know which pieces of equipment that we still use on your training and assessment there is around £360 worth of calibration to be done if it all is needed
I have attached copy for you to look at
Dave Allison"Sent in reply:
"Hi Dave,
Of that list you attached, the only thing we still use are the flux capacitors.
I think the ones we use are 1.21 jigawatts.
Cheers,
Chris"
😀 I sometimes do that too.
Take the opportunity to send inappropriate e-mails to women you fancy.
Positive responses it was you, bad response.... bloody hacked account!