I don't think Tom is paranoid. In the interest of safety, it's a good idea to detach an attached file and scan it thoroughly before opening it. Also, to be clear, an attachment is NOT "only email" -- it isn't subject to the same restrictions in how much damage it can cause that an email message is. If it's an executable, it COULD damage your computer; even the most benign sounding attached executable could be something that executes a command that reformats your hard drive. If it's a data file, it could still pass a virus, like the MS Office macro-viruses. And yes, I've received macro-viruses by email multiple times. Everyone's got their own threshhold of safety; I also never open an attachment from someone I don't know, particularly an executable. As much as we'd like to think that this RSL community is safe, there can always be one kid who wants to wreak havoc, or someone who is bored one day and wants to feel powerful, who sends something out with ill intent. If you ARE going to assume that attachments are safe, I recommend that you do a thorough backup of files that you can't do without on a regular basis. I'd hate to lose all the research I've done and emailed information I've received in a single moment with a bad judgement on whether to open a file.