Can my computer get a virus when I view a message in the Read screen?

No. When Juno displays a message in the Read screen, it opens the plain-text or (for Juno 3.0 or higher) HTML message. Viruses cannot be carried or disseminated in plain text, only in more complex files like documents, spreadsheets, or executable programs.

Attached files - usually documents, spreadsheets, or pictures for your plain-text email messages and sound or video files for HTML messages - may indeed carry viruses, but these viruses cannot infect your computer unless you open the attached file or agree to let Juno to run the program embedded in the HTML message.

Follow this procedure to check file attachments for viruses. When an HTML message containing an executable file arrives in your Inbox, Juno will ask if you want to run the program or open the attached file. Click No unless you are absolutely sure the message is safe.

Other questions about viruses:

• What is a computer virus?
• How can I protect my computer from viruses?
• How do I check a file attachment for viruses?
• What should I do if I think my computer has a virus?
• Where can I learn more about viruses?