Have you ever received an email message from a friend that just seemed a little weird? Even though it was from someone you knew, something just wasn't right. Sometimes the message sounds too good to be true, or maybe a message is forwarded from a friend or relative with an urgent warning that seems unbelievable.

Tip: Use a quick Google search to check out suspicious messages.

Example: This morning I got an email from someone I haven't seen in a long time that said ""I think you need to know I saw your pix on spoilroll-com-you gotta see it." I was suspicious, so instead of following the instructions in the message, I went to Google and typed in "spoilroll" to search and see what was being said about that site on the internet. I was GLAD that I did -- the first result was "BEWARE FACEBOOK WALL MESSAGES " and warning me that this was a phishing scam to trick me into typing my personal information on that website, which would then send the same message to all of my friends as well.

Source: Besides using a general Google search, the best website I have found for debunking email rumors and internet hoaxes is Snopes.com. This site lists hundreds of internet hoaxes, rumors, misinformation, and strange news items and tries to verify each one as true or false using research. It's fun to browse, but also useful to check when you have a read something suspicious online or in your email.