Chain letters can be one of the more trivial forms of e-mail abuse, Kaiser said. Far more serious are cases of harassment, including sexual harassment. This can involve unwanted advances or lewd comments. In all cases that Kaiser has been privy to, it was a male who was the harasser. That is not to say that only men commit these acts, she said.
Students also use their e-mail accounts to buy or sell things through the Internet.
In many instances, the students don't receive the product for which they've paid. In such cases, there is nothing that the postmaster can do except advise the victim to call the police or take the case to small claims court. In any case where e-mail users feel harassed, they should speak with the postmaster at their school, said Gail Kaiser, Internet postmaster at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The postmaster will decide whether the claim has merit and decide what action needs to be taken. A first step might be for victims to tell the harasser that they wish these advances to stop.