Is someone using my .mac mail for spamming?

[srobert]

I've been getting 2-3 of these message a day for the past week (my .mac email address is srobert@mac.com):

* * * * *

Subject: Delivery Failure Notification

- These recipients of your message have been processed by the mail server:
hghspray4you@arabia.com; Failed; 5.1.1 (bad destination mailbox address)

Remote MTA 66.28.189.160: SMTP diagnostic: 550 5.1.1 <hghspray4you@arabia.com> is not a valid mailbox

Reporting-MTA: dns; C9mailgw05.amadis.com
Received-from-MTA: dns; ctmail.com (10.9.0.1)
Arrival-Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 11:10:13 -0700

Final-Recipient: rfc822; hghspray4you@arabia.com
Action: Failed
Status: 5.1.1 (bad destination mailbox address)
Remote-MTA: dns; 66.28.189.160
Diagnostic-Code: smtp; 550 5.1.1 <hghspray4you@arabia.com> is not a valid mailbox
Return-Path: <srobert@mac.com>
Received: from ctmail.com (10.9.0.1) by C9mailgw05.amadis.com (NPlex 6.5.029)
id 40D6E3CA000A1980 for hghspray4you@arabia.com; Mon, 21 Jun 2004 11:10:13 -0700
Message-ID: <40D6E3CA000A1980@C9mailgw05.amadis.com> (added by postmaster@mail2world.com)
X-Commtouch-Loop:3
Received: FROM [207.134.96.226] By c9diamond03.diamond.amadis.com ; Mon, 21 Jun 2004 11:10:12 -0800
From: srobert@mac.com
To: hghspray4you@arabia.com
Subject: Mail Delivery (failure hghspray4you@arabia.com)
Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 14:14:42 -0400
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: multipart/related;
type="multipart/alternative";
boundary="----=_NextPart_000_001B_01C0CA80.6B015D10"
X-Priority: 3
X-MSMail-Priority: Normal

* * * * *

The one above is a little different than the usual ones. Usually, there is also a buch af .mac email address listed atwhich the email failed to deliver to. Nobody in my address book.

Sometime there is spam-like messages at the end of the email i.e. prescription renewal.

What's happening?

What should I do?

Thanks

[DGFan]

Someone is sending spam with your email as the "from" address. But they're not using your account.

[srobert]

Someone is sending spam with your email as the "from" address. But they're probably not using your account.

Is there anything I can do about this? I hate spammers with a passion. :mad:

[DGFan]

Is there anything I can do about this? I hate spammers with a passion. :mad:

No. It's possible to create a mail from anyone (you, me, bill gates, etc...). If the mail server is setup right the (faked) sender shouldn't receive a bounce message for spam. But it happens sometimes and you'll just have to get used to it.

[srobert]

No. It's possible to create a mail from anyone (you, me, bill gates, etc...). If the mail server is setup right the (faked) sender shouldn't receive a bounce message for spam. But it happens sometimes and you'll just have to get used to it.

Bummer. This means that on top of my usual daily dose of spam, I'll receive a flood of bounce because of some incompetent spammer? Makes me wanna puke. I hate parasites. It should be my right to give 'em 1 punch in the face for each spam mail they send me :D That aughta make 'em stop.

I'd also like to punch in the face every numbskulls that purchase things from spammers, making it a profitable enough venture for it to continue to exist.

A message to all those "viagra-using-too-shy-or-too-poor-to-have-it-prescribed-by-a-real-doctor-so-i-purchase-it-from-spam™" and those "My-wee-wee-is-too-short-HEY!-I'll-just-buy-one-of those-ointments-cream-or-patch-from-these-REAL-doctors-sending-me-emails-so-my-wee-wee-will-grow-faster-than-you-can-say-chi-chi-chia!™" STOP ENCOURAGING SPAM!

[Menkar]

Outgoing spoofing (where someone hi-jacks your e-mail address) is one possibility. Incoming spoofing, where someone sends you an e-mail pretending that it is a delivery failure, is another possibility.
With incoming spoofs there are most of the times an attachment, which in a correct delivery-failure situation would contain your sent message, now contains a virus. Typically a Windows/Outlook problem though :)