All they have to do is click on your member name, then 'send email'. That's the only way that it would say it was coming from GardenWeb. I'm sure they are just selecting everyone who's active on a particular forum. It may be annoying, but it's not personal. You said it gave you the creeps; what about it was creepy? BTW, I think you should do like Jo and report it to GardenWeb. And of course never, never open links that come to you from unwanted emails! Kate

albert- My response was to your first post. Looking at what you subsequently wrote, I'd say that it may make sense based on whatever filtering and spam identification software Yahoo has in operation. Spam filtering is a complex and imperfect art, and that folder with many links could have looked suspicious based on whatever algorithms were at work. If you try to send the links in the folder like you did at first and it gets kicked back again, that would likely confirm that this approach won't work. However, if you can use something else, like gmail or Hotmail, it may get through.

I found out the email is legit. I called checkfree from the # on their website and was told if anyone was on the site during the specific hours mentioned in OP then they could be sujected to a hacker. I think I was that day, but can't remember the time. Anyway, checkfee only plans to provide people with a free one year McAfee virus program (big deal). I was told many people are not aware that if they pay their bills on line, the on line places may even use checkfree to pay the bills, unbeknown to you, which is why you "think" you don't have an account with checkfree, but you do. I found this out when I ask why people who don't have an account with them are getting the email. It doesn't quite make sense why someone's bill would be paid through checkfree if they didn't ask it to be via signing up. Interesting!!!! The woman I spoke with wasn't too terribly helpful, was aware of the issue, and frankly, didn't seem to care much. I've run my anti virus programs and luckily nothing came up. I've checked and will continue to check my accounts to ensure there's no fowl play. I have, through my credit card company, a faud package, so if anything happens to my accounts, I'm covered. Besides, this and changing PWs, there's not much else anyone can do.

Joyfulguy, it's not at all quicker to just call and talk, at least in my world. By the time I could finish saying, "Hi, it's Joann. How are you?" on the phone, I could already have a response to a text of, "Do you have the Mackey file?" or "What time tonight?"