MSN Hotmail Protection
How can Hotmail help me avoid junk mail (spam)?
How can MSN Hotmail help protect me from e-mail viruses?

MSN Hotmail Privacy
Can I use Hotmail as a business address?
How does Hotmail help protect the security of my e-mail?
Why does Hotmail ask for personal information?

Using MSN Hotmail
What is Microsoft .NET Passport?
What happens to associated Microsoft Kids Passports if my Hotmail account is deleted?
How can I check my corporate or school e-mail using Hotmail?
How does Hotmail work with MSN Messenger?
Can I send and receive attachments with Hotmail?
How does Hotmail work with pagers or mobile phones?
Can I receive and read Hotmail on my mobile device?

About MSN Hotmail

Hotmail is the world's largest provider of free, Web-based e-mail. It is based on the premise that e-mail access should be easy and possible from any computer connected to the World Wide Web. Hotmail eliminates the disparities among e-mail programs by adhering to the universal Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) standard. Sending and receiving e-mail from Hotmail is easy: go to the Hotmail Web site at http://g.msn.com/1HM7EN/157??PS=8322 or click the Hotmail link at http://g.msn.com/1HM7EN/141??PS=8322, sign in, and send an e-mail message. By using a Web browser as a universal e-mail program, Hotmail lets you stay connected anywhere in the world.

Back To Top

Hotmail gives you 2 megabytes (MB) of storage space when you store your messages and attachments on Hotmail servers. If you do not keep your account below this limit, Hotmail may remove some messages and their attachments. Messages and attachments removed by Hotmail cannot be recovered. To avoid exceeding the storage limit, we recommend that you save large attachments in a folder on your hard disk.

Note: If you use Microsoft® Outlook® 2003 at work, you can set it up to display your Hotmail account. Then, you can move messages from your Hotmail account into your Outlook folders. To display your Hotmail account in Outlook, on the Outlook menu, click Tools, and then click E-Mail Accounts. Click Add a new e-mail account, and then click Next. Click HTTP, and then click Next. Type the required information and follow the instructions on the screen.

Back To Top

Hotmail accounts can be viewed in these languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazilian), Spanish, Korean, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Swedish, and Dutch.

To view your Hotmail account in the language of your choice every time you sign in, go to the Options page and under Your Information, click Language.

Back To Top

Hotmail includes comprehensive online Help. After signing in to your Hotmail account, click Help in the upper right corner of any Hotmail page. For additional information, click Tips on Using Hotmail on the bottom right on the Home page.

If you have created an account and have forgotten your password, or you are having difficulty accessing your account, go to http://www.passport.com/ to use the Microsoft .NET Passport online password reset tool.

Back To Top

MSN Hotmail Protection

Hotmail does not condone or support sending junk mail, or spam, through the Hotmail system. The Hotmail Terms of Use (TOU) strictly forbids sending unsolicited e-mail and we terminate all reported accounts that are in violation of the TOU.

Protect yourself from junk mail

When it is activated, the Junk Mail Filter examines incoming messages and automatically sends e-mail it has identified as "junk" to your Junk Mail folder. You can choose your own level of protection: Default, Enhanced, or Exclusive; each with varying degrees of protection. Once e-mail is sent to your Junk Mail folder, messages are automatically deleted after a specified number of days; or, if you use the Junk Mail Deletion options, you can choose to have messages deleted as soon as they are sent to the Junk Mail folder.

To set up the Junk Mail Filter, sign in to your account, click Options, and then click Junk Mail Filter under Mail Handling. You can decide the level of protection you want:

Default - This is the default setting and always turned on. Your Inbox will be protected on a minimal level.

Enhanced - This level should catch most junk mail. Check your Junk Mail folder every week to make sure there aren't any valid e-mail messages (from friends, for example) in that folder. If you see a message that should not be in your Junk Mail folder, use the This is not Junk Mail button to indicate that the message should not have been sent to that folder.

Exclusive - This setting helps protect you from receiving unwanted junk mail. You will only receive e-mail from people or groups in your Contacts, or on your Safe List; all other e-mail will be sent to your Junk Mail folder (with the exceptions of MSN Hotmail WebCourier subscription newsletters and MSN Hotmail Member Letters). If you use Hotmail Reminders, be sure to add yourself to your contacts; otherwise the reminders will be sent to the Junk Mail folder. Hotmail will prompt you when you receive e-mail from someone who is not in your Contacts.

After setting up your Junk Mail Filter options, you can choose Junk Mail Deletion settings. On the Junk Mail filter setting pages, under Choose what to do with your Junk mail, choose Delete Junk mail immediately, or Deliver to Junk Mail Folder and delete later, and then click Save Changes.

For junk mail that is not caught by the Junk Mail Filter, select the message (you do not need to open it), and then click the Block button to prevent further delivery of e-mail from that sender or domain.

Report Spam that came from a Hotmail account:

Not all SPAM you receive from an @hotmail.com address is from a legitimate Hotmail account. In order for us to best assist you, please help us by identifying the true origin of the e-mail message you received.

1. Change your Mail Display Settings to include Full Headers by going to Hotmail Options and clicking Mail Display Settings under Additional Options. Under Message Headers, set it to Full. Click OK.

2. Search for the following line of text in the message header: X-originating-IP. An example looks like this:

   Sat 02 June 2001 13:47:27 PST
   X-Originating IP: [123.4.567.89]
   From: "Scarlett O' Hara"
   Scarlett0gwtw@hotmail.com

3. If you are unable to locate an X-originating-IP line in the header of the message, this indicates the message has been forged and is not from a legitimate Hotmail account. Unfortunately, we are unable to take action against this account because it does not implicate a Hotmail member. For more information on how to use Hotmail's Junk Mail Filter or Block Sender feature to remove unwanted SPAM, consult Hotmail's comprehensive online help by clicking "Help" in the upper right hand corner of your Hotmail Home Page.

4. If you find an X-originating-IP line in the header of the message, forward a complete copy of the message, including the full message headers to abuse@hotmail.com.

Report Spam coming from a non-Hotmail account:

Follow these easy steps to change your Mail Display Settings to include Full Headers:

1. Go to Hotmail Options and click Mail Display Settings under Additional Options. Under Message Headers, set it to Full. Click OK.

2. In the header, look at the last "Received:" notation to locate what .com domain it came from (the e-mail service provider). It will look something like @service_provider_name.com.

3. Forward a complete copy of the message, including the full message header to abuse@service_provider_name.com. If they do not have an abuse service, forward your complaint to webmaster@service_provider_name.com.

NON-Hotmail Users:

Report Spam that came from a Hotmail account:

Not all SPAM you receive from an @hotmail.com address is from a legitimate Hotmail account. In order for us to best assist you, please help us by identifying the true origin of the e-mail message you received.

1. Please consult the Help associated with your e-mail program to determine how to view complete (full) header information.

2. Search for the following line of text in the message header: X-originating-IP. An example looks like this:

   Sat 02 June 2001 13:47:27 PST
   X-Originating IP: [123.4.567.89]
   From: "Scarlett O' Hara"
   Scarlett0gwtw@hotmail.com

3. If you are unable to locate an X-originating-IP line in the header of the message, this indicates the message has been forged and is not from a legitimate Hotmail account. Unfortunately, we are unable to take action against this account because it does not implicate a Hotmail member. For more information on how to use Hotmail's Junk Mail Filter or Block Sender feature to remove unwanted SPAM, consult Hotmail's comprehensive online help by clicking "Help" in the upper right hand corner of your Hotmail Home Page.

4. If you find an X-originating-IP line in the header of the message, forward a complete copy of the message, including the full message headers to abuse@hotmail.com.

Back To Top

If you are a subscriber of MSN Extra Storage, or an MSN Internet Services monthly subscriber:

Whenever you receive attachments to e-mail messages, Hotmail will automatically scan them with McAfee VirusScan before downloading them. If an infected file is found, it will be cleaned.

Your files are also scanned when you attach them to outgoing e-mail. This helps reduce the spread of viruses to recipients of your e-mail.

If you have a free Hotmail account:

With a free Hotmail account, e-mail attachments are scanned for viruses, but not cleaned. If an infected file is discovered, you will receive a warning message before you continue with the download. We highly recommend updating your account to an MSN Extra Storage account to help protect your computer from viruses. MSN Extra Storage accounts can clean infected files before downloading them.

To ensure safety, we recommend that you never open attachments or Web site links from unknown sources.

Back To Top

MSN Hotmail Privacy

No, you may not use your Hotmail address as your primary business address. If, however, you work for a company with which you have an e-mail address and you want to use your Hotmail account to send and receive e-mail while you are away from your office computer, you may do so.

Example of prohibited use:
You run your own business. You and your employees want to use Hotmail accounts rather than registering and administering your accounts through a paid Internet service provider (ISP).

Example of allowed use:
You are a businessperson who travels. You have an e-mail account with your company. You use your Hotmail account to read and send solicited e-mail messages while you are traveling.

Hotmail prohibits account sharing. Since Hotmail is accessible from everywhere in the world, each individual is able to sign up for his or her own personal account. You are encouraged to sign up for an account of your own, to which only you have access. Sharing an account compromises the privacy and security of your e-mail.

Back To Top

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is the industry standard for secure connection on the Web. It is used primarily for transmitting sensitive information over the Internet. When you have a secure connection between your browser and a Web site, no one else can easily access the data that you send across the connection. MSN Hotmail uses SSL to encrypt your sign-in name and password when you sign in, to help protect your security online.

It is Hotmail policy to respect the privacy of its users. Therefore, Hotmail will not monitor, edit, or disclose the contents of a user's private communications unless required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to: (1) conform to the edicts of the law or comply with legal process served on Hotmail; (2) protect and defend the rights or property of Hotmail; or (3) act under exigent circumstances to protect the personal safety of its users or the public.

For more information, see our TRUSTe Approved Privacy Statement.

Back To Top

To offer you the best and most relevant experience, Hotmail asks you to complete your profile information, in order to display advertisements that are likely to be appropriate and of interest to you. For example, if you're a college student, you might not want to see an advertisement for a luxury car; however, you might be interested in a spring break special offer.

Also, if you ever forget your password, you may need to confirm your personal information with one of our customer service representatives to regain access to your account.

We respect the privacy of our users. From any page in Hotmail, click TRUSTe Approved Privacy Statement for complete information.

Back To Top

Using MSN Hotmail

Microsoft .NET Passport is an online service that lets you use your Hotmail address and password to sign in to any .NET Passport participating site or service.

Microsoft .NET Passport makes it easy to sign in to MSN sites such as Hotmail, and you will be automatically signed in to all other MSN sites that use .NET Passport.

Many sites outside of MSN also accept .NET Passport sign-in. To sign in, click the .NET Passport sign-in button or type your Hotmail address and password in the .NET Passport sign-in box.

Microsoft .NET Passport stores information that you provided during Hotmail registration--such as your name, country, and postal or ZIP Code--in your .NET Passport profile. Many sites ask for this information when you register with them. You can choose to share your .NET Passport profile information with participating .NET Passport sites that you sign in to, so that you won't have to retype it.

To learn more about Microsoft .NET Passport, go to http://www.passport.com/

Back To Top

If your Hotmail account is deleted, then your Microsoft .NET Passport is also deleted. As a result, you will be unable to manage any Kids Passports associated with your .NET Passport. This means that parents will not be able to grant or deny consent for any associated Microsoft Kids Passport. You can use a different .NET Passport to reassociate the Kids Passport. For more information, go to http://kids.passport.com/.

Back To Top

POP e-mail is sent through servers that use the Post Office Protocol (POP). POP allows computers to retrieve e-mail from any server that supports this protocol.

Subscribers to MSN Extra Storage or MSN Internet Access can view messages from POP e-mail accounts within Hotmail. The POP Mail option allows you to retrieve messages from up to four POP e-mail accounts. You can check e-mail from your company, your Internet service provider (ISP), and your school-all from your Hotmail account. In Hotmail, click Options. Under Additional Options, click POP Mail Retrieval Settings.

Back To Top

If MSN Messenger Service is installed on your computer, you can use your Hotmail sign-in name (.NET Passport) to sign in to MSN Messenger. When you are signed in to both Hotmail and MSN Messenger, you will see the online status indicator () next to any contacts who have MSN Messenger installed and are online. You can send an instant message from Hotmail by clicking the online status indicator.

MSN Messenger also sends desktop notifications when you receive new e-mail in your Hotmail account. Click the message notification to read the new message.

Back To Top

If you have a free Hotmail account, you can send and receive messages up to 1 megabyte (MB) in size including attachments.

Attachments sent to your Hotmail account can be downloaded to your personal computer by clicking them and saving them on your hard disk. GIF and JPEG images and HTML files are automatically displayed in the Web browser window.

Back To Top

You can set up notifications for arrival of new Hotmail messages with MSN Mobile. Hotmail can send notifications of important new e-mail messages to your pager or cell phone. You can set up Hotmail Alerts to page you with notifications of new messages based on the sender or subject by using the MSN Mobile service. For more information on MSN Mobile, see http://g.msn.com/1HM7EN/152??PI=44364.

Back To Top

You can check your Hotmail e-mail from most Web-enabled devices by signing up for MSN Mobile and logging into the service from your Web-enabled device. From almost all Web-enabled phones, you can go the MSN Mobile site by choosing MSN Mobile from the phone's Web menu or by typing "msn" at the URL. From the main menu, choose Hotmail.

For more information on MSN Mobile, go to http://g.msn.com/1HM7EN/152??PI=44364.

Back To Top