viewing html emails

[Jeff]

I use Outlook Express (because I like it and Mailwasher Pro to screen my
emails) in XP and have always had OE set so that I both view and write my
emails in plain text. I recently heard that it is no longer unsafe to view
emails in html in OE6.

Is that true? Many newslists now seem to have gone to html digests.

Jeff

 

[Galen]

In Jeff had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

I use Outlook Express (because I like it and Mailwasher Pro to screen
my emails) in XP and have always had OE set so that I both view and
write my emails in plain text. I recently heard that it is no longer
unsafe to view emails in html in OE6.

Is that true? Many newslists now seem to have gone to html digests.

Jeff

Reading email in HTML format isn't ever advised and hasn't been for a long
time. If you trust the source and have been dealing with them for a long
time then you can simply click View > Message in HTML when there is
something you'd like to read in HTML format. Reading in plain text allows
you to see the real URL for sites that you'd be taken to, prevents any
scripts from loading (which should have happened anyway if you have good
settings for your zones,) etc...

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/
http://kgiii.info/

"At present I am, as you know, fairly busy, but I propose to devote my
declining years to the composition of a textbook which shall focus the
whole art of detection into one volume." - Sherlock Holmes

 

[Jeff]

In Jeff had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:


Reading email in HTML format isn't ever advised and hasn't been for a
long time. If you trust the source and have been dealing with them
for a long time then you can simply click View > Message in HTML when
there is something you'd like to read in HTML format. Reading in
plain text allows you to see the real URL for sites that you'd be
taken to, prevents any scripts from loading (which should have
happened anyway if you have good settings for your zones,) etc...

Thank you. That is precisely what I do, but recently read in a Microsoft
newslist that html was now safe which is why I asked. Thanks for the
clarifiction.

Jeff

 

[Mike Hall - MS MVP Windows Shell/User]

There have been security updates which have reduced the risk, but caution is
still advised as new threats appear out of the blue..