Another user accessing email

[G Man]

Hi all, not sure if this is the correct forum, but a friend of mine wants to know if someone is accessing her hotmail account, and the only way i could think is to leave an unopened new email in the inbox and see if it becomes read... anyone got any trickier ideas? Thanks.

[Radical Dreamer]

Or just change the password so they cant anymore

[G Man]

Thats what i said! :P But she wants to catch the culprit. If it helps its on her boyfriends computer which she has never (and probably will never) use.

[craigmodius]

Originally posted by G Man
its on her boyfriends computer which she has never (and probably will never) use.

what do you mean by this? she suspects her boyfriend is checking her email from his PC? or her boyfriend has the email account and wants to know if someone besides himself is accessing it? please clarify.

reason being if the girlfriend suspects the boyfriend is reading her email and she has access to the PC she suspects he is accessing it from then that opens up some possibilities in the line of IE Logfile Viewers or keystroke loggers etc.

[G Man]

Sorry, what i mean is that she never has used his computer and she probably won't.... but i will tell her of the possibility of log viewers and so on, but i think she was looking for a remote way to see if someone had been accessing the email; at what time etc... which i dont think is possible with hotmail.

[Carpel]

Have her leave an HTML email in her inbox, unopened. In the mail, have it load an image off of a webserver she has access to or a friends server etc. I'd put an image that says "Your busted, IP Logged" or anything she likes, check the webserver logs to see what IP's hit it. Now you have an unavoidable record generated, that can also positively identify the offender by IP address. If her bf has a broadband connection with a fairly constant IP, she has him cold. If not, she can at least look to see who owns the IP block to see if its the same service provider as the suspected nosey person.

Soon as they open the mail, it pulls the image from the server, leaves it's IP in the logs, and the case is closed.

Dave

[G Man]

Excellent idea, Dave. I'll let her know. Thanks.