Alex Chaffee

While deleting a spam text I received a spam email. 🤬

But the email was not spam— it’s something worse! I have a short gmail handle so people mistakenly use it instead of their own to sign up for a service. (Eg they use “[email protected]” instead of “alexcho” or “[email protected]”) That service does NOT verify that address— just sends me updates. A lot. Like every time the real Alex Cho wonders where his confirmation is. This feels worse than spam since it’s *designed* to annoy an innocent (me).

Apr 1, 2023 at 3:36pmWeb
Show threadNelson MinarApr 1, 2023
@alexch I am so grateful I did not take nelson@gmail when I had the chance.
Show threadJessamynApr 1, 2023
@nelson @alexch I get email for so many jessamyns. Enough so that I have a form letter I send back to non-spammer people contacting me that way.
Show threadWilliam PietriApr 1, 2023

@jessamyn @nelson @alexch

And here I must give a shout-out to William Pietri, a DJ in Louisiana, and Wanda Pietri of Houston, both of whom have put my gmail address down for a number of things! With a bonus mention of Elvis William Pietri of Florida who keeps getting arrested for things that end up in my Google search results. I kinda want to get all of us together for an evening. Maybe we can help Elvis plan better crimes.

Show threadAlex ChaffeeApr 1, 2023

@jessamyn @nelson

When it’s clear that an honest human made an honest mistake, I don’t mind replying nicely and deleting the mistaken cc or whatever. But unethical apps that send emails to an unverified address are immune to both form letters and friendly replies, so I dunno what the solution is.

Show threadKarawynn Long 🦊✍🏻🏳️‍🌈😷♿Apr 1, 2023

@alexch I have a very specific gmail "doppelganger" who for years has been intermittently giving out my address instead of her own. I have gotten everything from health insurance logins to library book notices to hotel reservation confirmations. I know pretty much everything about her except what her actual gmail address is. 🙃

Not the biggest reason I left gmail a couple years back, but it contributed...

Show threadKarel P KerezmanApr 1, 2023

@karawynn @alexch Somewhere in the midwestern US (so, "back east" from my perspective, because this country, y'all) someone's been typo-ing /my/ Gmail instead of theirs into all manner of sign-ups, and it's been going on for /years/ now.

Most recently? Spencer's Gifts. Sigh.

Show threadKarawynn Long 🦊✍🏻🏳️‍🌈😷♿Apr 1, 2023
@greyduck @alexch well this is starting to make me wonder what percentage of gmail users experience this.
Show threadBeth MeachamApr 1, 2023

@karawynn @greyduck @alexch

I have two of them. One is named Brett, the other is Beverly. I don't know their real email addresses, but know their banks, their car service garages, and their phone companies. I cancel appointments for them when I'm bored.

Show threadAlex ChaffeeApr 1, 2023

@bethmeacham @karawynn @greyduck

the only time i succumbed to the temptation to cancel appointments was when one of my doppelgängers made dates at a golf course 😈

(Cause F that habitat-razing hobby. Just play Pokemon Go on a hike or something instead.)

Show threadKarawynn Long 🦊✍🏻🏳️‍🌈😷♿Apr 1, 2023

@alexch @bethmeacham @greyduck

When I got the hotel reservation confirmation, I actually tried phoning the hotel during her stay and asking to speak to the person (I know her full name), hoping to explain what was going on and get her to pay more attention.

She refused my call. 😒 So then I stopped caring about what she was missing out on.