Occasionally, I receive an an email that is clearly not spam and yet is clearly not intended for me. I’m fortunate to have obtained the coveted firstname.lastname@gmail.com as my email address many years ago. I’m guessing there are a number of women with my name, which although not common is not incredibly rare, who have a similar address with the addition of a middle initial or a number.
A couple of these were attempts to sign up for some online service, which typically requires a confirmation. But apparently some sites are not exactly rigorous with their validation process. Someone used my email for a CenturyLink account and when I contacted them to have it removed, they told me they couldn’t do it. I assume the real account holder eventually straightened it out, because the email stopped after a few months.
I had more luck removing an account for a hotel chain loyalty membership, although it required a phone call to their customer service number. I also had to decline an email confirmation for a social website aimed at teens (had to google that one) and, just recently, a signup for Snapchat. The creepiest one was an email from someone on a dating website who had viewed “my” profile. I’ve ignored a couple that didn’t seem worth bothering about, including one from a “colleague” about some academic event.
Yesterday I received one that was a request for a reference. A Canadian man was applying for a volunteer position at a school and the director requesting the reference somehow ended up with my email address. I responded “not me,” so she wouldn’t be left hanging and she replied that I was supposed to be the girlfriend of the reference seeker. We LOL’ed about that. I do have to wonder how he managed to screw up his “girlfriend’s” email address.
I’m assuming these errant emails are not the fault of a singular individual, but rather a number of women whose email addresses are too close to mine for comfort. I guess I should be grateful my name is not Jane Smith.