Thursday, January 16, 2014

How to Keep Strangers and Weirdos from Emailing You Through Google+

Google added a curious new feature to Google+ last week that lets users email you even if they don't know your Gmail address. For those looking for networking or business opportunities through the social network, it could be a useful feature. But for those wanting to keep their online presence (and inbox) more private, the addition is entirely unwanted.


Here's how to turn it off.


In Gmail, click on the gear cog in the upper right to access your settings menu. In Settings, select Email via Google+. There, you can give 'Anyone on Google+,' 'Extended Circles,' 'Circles,' or 'No one' permission to email you. I'd select 'Circles' or 'Extended Circles' if you want friends and acquaintances to be able to reach you. But if you want to be a hermit, go ahead and select 'No one.'


If you've already received emails from someone who's not in any of your Google+ circles, you can either add them to a circle to keep getting emails, or block them by clicking 'Report Spam or Abuse.' If you ignore the message, they won't be able to send you any new emails, but they can reply to the original thread they sent.


You can get more information in Google's support forums.


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