Viral E-Mails

Popular forwarded (chain) e-mails are particularly likely to be untrue. FactCheck.org offers the following clues that sometimes indicate bogus emails: (1) The author is anonymous. (2) The author is supposedly a famous person. (3) There’s a reference to a legitimate source (even though it contradicts the information in the e-mail or may be a phishing attempt). (4) The message is riddled with spelling errors. (5) The author just loves using exclamation points (AND ALL CAPS!). (6) The message argues and defensively protests that it is not false. (7) There’s [bad] math involved.