So yesterday I get an e-mail from a client who happens to be on holiday.

I'll copy and paste it:

My sincere regrets for this sudden request, Things actually got out of
control on my trip to Madrid Spain for short holiday I was mugged,
all my belongings including mobile phone and credit card were
all stolen at gun point. I need your help flying back home.

Am Cash Strapped at the moment. I've made contact with my bank but the
best they could do was to send me a new card in the mail which will
take 2-4 working days to arrive here.I need you to lend me some Money
to sort my self out of this predicament, i will pay back once i make
it out of Madrid.Western Union or Money Gram is the fastest option to
wire funds to me.i will pay back once i get this over Let me know if
you need my details (Full names/location) to effect the transfer. You
can reach me via email or hotel's desk phone and  the number
is,+34916419160.

With thanks and good wishes
Peter

..................

After reading it I flip out and think: "Why would this guy he ask me for help? I've only seen him a few times!" So I e-mail him back and he tells me he never wrote me that e-mail (?).  So after googling the number I come up with this:

http://www.blackburn.anglican.org/news_more.asp?news_id=567

 Problem is that the hoax e-mail matches my client's e-mail address and that's why I though it was really him. I don't know how this Nigerian scammers hack people's e-mail addresses but they're doing a dam good job!

Yep. I've gad a few friends "emailing" me from their real yahoo accounts selling me Viagra (I told them their address had been hacked) but this personalized e-mail asking me for money because they got robbed takes a whole new turn. It's just getting scary by the minute. Do these these hackers have access to private e-mails on my inbox? Whats next? Some nigerian hacker who finds out what I do for a living and blackmailing me (or my clients!)?

 

No, if you're good about looking after your account, they can only read what the real owner of that account sent/received and hasn't deleted.

A friend is forever getting hacked. I have tried and tried to tell them how to generate a strong but memorable password and how to look after it, but it typically takes about a couple of weeks between them getting yet another email account and the scam spam arriving from it.

Yep people think changing their account will prevent this, it won't it'll simply start all over again- after a short time lapse of course.