Don't be a sucker for e-mail hoaxes

P.T. Barnum is often quoted as having said, ''There's a sucker born every minute."

It turns out, there's no evidence that Barnum ever made such a declaration. Interesting, isn't it, that one of the most famous quotes about the gullibility of people is falsely attributed to Barnum?

Still the quote holds true. In this Internet era, there really are as many suckers as there are megabytes.

Take for example, a very annoying e-mail making the rounds. The subject line says, ''PLEEEEEASE REEEEEAD! IT WAS ON GOOD MORNING AMERICA TODAY SHOW."

The ''it" the e-mail is referring to is a story that Microsoft and AOL are running a tracking test and if you forward the e-mail, you could get $245 for every person you send it to. The e-mail goes on to claim, ''For every person that you sent it to that forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you $243, and for every third person that receives it, you will be paid $241. Within two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and then send you a check."

Oh, and to make it all seem so legit, the writer (you can't really tell who it is) claims he or she got a check for $24,800 two weeks after receiving the e-mail. Then the person urges, ''Please forward this to as many people as possible. You are bound to get at least $10,000. We're not going to help them out with their e-mail beta test without getting a little something for our time. My brother's girlfriend got in on this a few months ago. She showed me her check. It was for the sum of $4,324.44."

You would think I wouldn't have to say this, but here goes: You are a sucker if you believe this is true.

Stop forwarding this darned e-mail. It's a hoax, according to a spokesman for Microsoft.

Fortunately, the e-mail doesn't contain a virus, so it's not too harmful. But what about others that are forwarded that result in undue worry? Most recently, I received an e-mail with a dire warning.

It claimed that the plastic credit card-looking room keys hotels often use contain personal information, such as your credit card number and expiration date and home address. Don't just turn the cards in at the end of your stay, the e-mail warns. Anybody, especially an unscrupulous hotel employee, can take the card and -- using a scanning device -- access your information.

I was worried that out there in some trash can was a plastic hotel key I had discarded with my personal information.

Turns out this, too, is not true.

''On most hotel key cards, there is an encoder system with numbers only," explained Victor Glover, senior vice president of safety and security for Accor North America and chairman of the Loss Prevention Committee for the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

Glover further explained, ''The number represents the date and time a guest checks in and out. Once that date and time has passed, the key is no longer active. The magnetic strip on the back of the card carries the encoder numbers that will correspond to the strips in the door itself. The activation of the key card is solely based on how long a guest is staying, not credit card, Social Security, and other personal information."

OK, so I was a sucker. But this particular e-mail sounded so plausible.

If you are curious about a suspicious e-mail, there is nothing wrong in checking it out. Try www.snopes.com. In fact, the Microsoft/AOL money giveaway is number two on the site's 25 Hottest Urban Legends.

What you should never do is forward these e-mails. And if you do, don't think it's a harmless action.

Here's the note I got along with the e-mail promoting the bogus Microsoft giveaway, ''Sorry about the mail of this sort, but maybe we can benefit from this ... who knows? Try it yourself, what can you lose?"

Folks, in the end somebody could lose. Forwarding these e-mails could result in many of your friends, co-workers, or family members ending up on spam e-mail lists. That could in turn increase the amount of junk mail they get. And that might lead to somebody becoming a sucker who loses some real money.

Michelle Singletary is a columnist for The Washington Post.