# "Adam used Dropbox to share a folder with you!" - Spam? Malware? Something else? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 6, 2018, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926 "2018-04-06T15:04:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/1 "2018-04-06T15:04:08Z")
Just got an email headed with this - I don’t know Adam (from Adam, heh), and didn’t click on the link. What is it, do you think? ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/2 "2018-04-06T15:13:47Z")
Probably phishing. You click on the link, it looks like Dropbox (but it isn’t), you log in and they steal your username and password. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/3 "2018-04-06T16:12:22Z")
Or it could be a virus or other malware, which is being distributed via the real Dropbox so as to avoid your e-mail program’s virus checker. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/4 "2018-04-06T17:26:22Z")
Could be someone used the wrong email address and meant to send it to someone else. Autofill can be annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/5 "2018-04-06T18:09:46Z")
Delete it. It’s either a mistake, and not for you, or a scam. The scam option is the more likely. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/6 "2018-04-06T18:49:42Z")
Already done. Thanks. Anyone else received an email like this, mentioning Dropbox? ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/7 "2018-04-06T19:17:28Z")
Can’t go wrong deleting it; just leave it in your trash folder in case you realize later that it is legit. I sent something to someone from DB this morning. It appears as “User Name (via Dropbox)”, but when you hover over it the return email address is “[no-reply@dropbox.com](mailto:no-reply@dropbox.com)”. If the return address is anything but this then it is spam. If it’s that, it could be legit, even if it’s a wrong email address that was typed in/selected. ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/8 "2018-04-06T21:19:53Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Already done. Thanks. Anyone else received an email like this, mentioning Dropbox? Yep. I assumed it was a scam and deleted it. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2018, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/9 "2018-04-06T21:21:47Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Already done. Thanks. Anyone else received an email like this, mentioning Dropbox? Sure, I’ve received it. Which is why I avoid using Dropbox, ever – it’s too hard to separate the pfact from the phish. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2018, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/10 "2018-04-07T00:57:51Z")
Isn’t it trivial? If the link points to [dropbox.com](http://dropbox.com), it’s probably a legit (if accidental) share request. If it doesn’t, it’s probably fake. Why the uncertainty? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2018, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/11 "2018-04-07T01:21:41Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > Isn’t it trivial? If the link points to [dropbox.com](http://dropbox.com), it’s probably a legit (if accidental) share request. If it doesn’t, it’s probably fake. Why the uncertainty? Because, if you don’t know what you are getting when you download, you may be pfished or pfucked. ---
**Author:** ![Tatterdemalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/43a26b/32.png) [@Tatterdemalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tatterdemalion)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2018, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/12 "2018-04-07T01:36:24Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Because, if you don’t know what you are getting when you download, you may be pfished or pfucked. Or pfisted and phlucked. Sent from my Pixel C using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/13 "2018-04-08T01:16:55Z")
Sometimes picture messages get shared as dropbox folders. But if you don’t know the person who supposedly sent it then it probably is a scam. ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2018, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/14 "2018-04-08T02:50:58Z")
Click on a link in an email from someone I don’t know? I don’t think so. ---
**Author:** ![Lips\_Obsession](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bbce88/32.png) [@Lips\_Obsession](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lips_Obsession)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/15 "2018-04-09T19:24:08Z")
Does Dropbox scan shared files for viruses or trojans? The link could be to Dropbox, but to a virus if they don’t scan them… ---
**Author:** ![seal\_cleaner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@seal\_cleaner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seal_cleaner)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2018, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/16 "2018-04-10T00:21:33Z")
I get a few a week. If it’s a legitimate upload I assume I’ll hear from the sender eventually. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2018, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/17 "2018-04-10T02:49:17Z")
Every single day I delete at least a couple of emails from a person wanting to share a Google Drive document, Sharepoint or a Dropbox link, typically selling sex or trying to convince me it’s a receipt for Western Union. Every filter I create is gotten past within a few days. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2018, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adam-used-dropbox-to-share-a-folder-with-you-spam-malware-something-else/811926/18 "2018-04-10T04:04:03Z")
Thanks, all, for your good advice.