One person gets a spam message and nobody panics because it’s part of e-mail. But if I say everyone got the same e-mail, everyone loses their mind.

I work at the help desk for a healthcare organization with over 13,000 users. Because of this, out call volume is extremely high, with no end to the stupid (l)user stories. Here’s today’s gem.

A spammer got a hold of our global group e-mail address and sent out a generic spam message. Because of this, everyone in the organization got the e-mail, causing a small spike in call volume. Noticed four in the queue and pretty much ignored it. A small spike in call volume is nothing in the hive mind.

While on the phone with one of my users about this problem, she went ballistic and said she just got an e-mail saying she’d been hacked. Seconds later I got the same e-mail: “Looks like you’ve been hacked”. Of course, it was only a spam message. No one had been hacked, but one user decided to reply to all with this ignorant and fearsome message. The clincher? This user is the secretary for the organization’s president.

I looked up at the queue board. Twenty and climbing. Oh come ON….

Two days later, our call volume is still higher than normal. The status line regarding this e-mail doesn’t do anything to detract callers. I hope that our administrative friend remembers next time what Uncle Ben said to Peter: “With great power comes great responsibility”.