Mail Forwarding - Why Would You Do It?

First of all we need to get some terms stated. I have been in the business for just over two years and there is still some confusion over the topic.

Mail forwarding: is a service that allows you to have your mail sent to a “mailbox” and then they will forward it off to your location. This mail is generally sent in bulk to the recipient and is very useful if you travel, or don’t have a permanent address.

Mail Redirection: is when you have mail sent direct to a mailbox and then it is “remailed” to another location. This is mainly used by organisations or individuals who wish to keep their physical address a secret.

Remailing: is as simple as receiving a letter, re-stamping and addressing the letter then posting it again. This is pretty much what happens when mail is forwarded or redirected.

First of all when you think about tampering with mail such as remailing, forwarding etc. you think “dodgy” or is that legal? Quite simply yes, it is legal but it all depends on what the intent of the service is. I will explain why people need to have a fake mail address.

Mail Drop: is defined as “an address or place at which a nonresident person receives mail, often of a secret nature” (2005) Dictionary.com

So why are there so many names for the same services?

It is pretty simple to understand why there are so many names and that is because the vendors that offer these services are trying to obtain as many hits through search engines as possible, they use phrases such as “forwarding” “redirection” etc.

In doing this they can confuse the customer and they will not have a clear understanding of the services that are available.

What service should I use then?

Mail drops are generally the most defined term and are understandably the most common. I define Mail Drops as a mailbox that has been purchased on your behalf and all mail within the mailbox is sent to your predefined recipient address. Most Vendors provide shared mail boxes, where you share a box with many users for a cheap price, or dedicated services where you actually rent the whole mailbox. You should look at how manageable your account is, can you have multiple predefined recipient addresses, and can you see what mail you have and how much mail you have in the box at any time.

Why would people even use such a service?

Anonymity is the simple answer, or people who choose to keep their identity secret from others. There are many reasons for doing this, the most legitimate reason for using such services is for people who move around and do not have one stagnant address. Although the services are set up by legitimate vendors, there are the customers who wish to evade the law and have private documents sent without detection. These customers can harm or damage the vendor’s reputation and if any prohibited material is detected they can often face heavy charges.

There are many vendors out there who provide this service, I am not going to recommend any particular vendor but I do advise that you shop around and take a look at their history and talk to other customers who have used their services. All the vendors are located in multiple countries; you should take a look at their country of origin, what privacy laws are enforced there, what is their law enforcement like? Then take a look at the site. Read their privacy statement, try to understand it. Make sure you fully understand their terms of service. You do not want to be stuck with a huge fine, or if you’re trying to keep yourself anonymous, you don’t want to have your private information public. Or worst of all have them read your private mail!

Good luck

Steve
©Private Mail Services
http://www.private-services.com 2005 - Keeping You Anonymous

---

Detect Spyware Online

You can detect spyware online using free spyware cleaners and... Read More

Secrets On Security: A Gentle Introduction To Cryptography

Let us take the example of scrambling an egg. First,... Read More

Three-pronged Trojan Attack Threatens Security on the Internet

Glieder (Win32.Glieder.AK), Fantibag (Win32.Fantibag.A) and Mitglieder (Win32.Mitglieder.CT) are not names... Read More

Wireless Network Security

Working from home has its advantages, including no commute, a... Read More

Sarbanes-Oxley: A Cross-Industry Email Compliance Challenge

Is your enterprise following the rules?The bulk of financial information... Read More

Beware of Imitations! Security, Internet Scams, and the African Real Estate Agenda

Fishing on the Internet has come a long way. However,... Read More

Spyware Attacks! Windows Safe Mode is No Longer Safe

Many of us have run into an annoying and time-consuming... Read More

5 Simple Steps to Protect your Digital Downloads

A couple of days ago, I was searching for a... Read More

Spyware Programs Are Out To Get You!

The average computer is packed with hidden software that can... Read More

Information Security for E-businessmen: Just a Couple of Ideas

If you constantly deal with bank or electronic accounts, it... Read More

Why you Must Secure your Digital Product and Thank You Web Page

A couple of years back, I paid my dues the... Read More

Watch Out For That Scam

The IFCC (Internet Fraud Complaint Center) received over 200,000 complaint... Read More

With the Rise of Internet Crimes, Users are Turning to High-Tech ?PI?s? for Solutions

High-tech private investigators are becoming the answer for many Internet... Read More

Dont Allow Hackers to Take Out Money from Your Bank Account

If you know what is the 'Fishing' then it's very... Read More

Spyware, What It Is, What It Does, And How To Stop It

Spyware is software that runs on a personal computer without... Read More

Is Shopping Online For Your Horse Gifts Safe?

Shopping for horse gifts or other gift items on the... Read More

From Spyware with Love!

It's late. You've been scouring the web for that perfect... Read More

How to Thwart the Barbarian Spyware!

Today,on most internet user's computers, we have the ability to... Read More

Road Warrior At Risk: The Dangers Of Ad-Hoc Wireless Networking

Airport Menace: The Wireless Peeping Tom As a network... Read More

A Painless Plagiarism Solution

A crowded marketplace can lead to unethical webmasters using underhand... Read More

Its Time to Sing the Encryption Song - Again!

Yes, I'm wearing my encryption hat again. Why you may... Read More

I Spy...Something Terribly Wrong (In Your Computer)

This really chapped my lips...I recently bought a new computer.... Read More

What Every Internet Marketer Should Know About Spyware

If you run any type of Internet business, Adware and... Read More

Virus Nightmare..Lessons Learned

I got a virus the other day, Thursday I believe... Read More

Cybercriminals Trick: Targeted Trojan-Containing Emails

Threats we ordinary Web users face online leave us no... Read More

The One Critical Piece Of Free Software Thats Been Overlooked

Can You Prevent Spyware, Worms, Trojans, Viruses, ... To Work... Read More

Virus Prevention 101

Blaster, Welchia, Sobig, W32, Backdoor, Trojan, Melissa, Klez, Worm, Loveletter,... Read More

Free Spyware Removal - Its Not As Easy As It Sounds

Nobody wants to pay to remove spyware. At the very... Read More

Phishing and Pharming: Dangerous Scams

As soon as almost all computer users already got used... Read More

How to Fight Spyware

If you are wondering how to fight spyware for safe... Read More

IPv6 - Next Step In IP Security

IPv6, IntroductionThe high rate at wich the internet continualy evolves... Read More

Reducing Fraudulent Transations ? 5 Simple Ways To Protect Yourself

The money being spent online is steadily growing. With billions... Read More

How To Clean the Spies In Your Computer?

Manual Spy Bot Removal > BookedSpaceBookedSpace is an Internet Explorer... Read More