How to prevent Google+ users from e-mailing you
Other Google+ users can now send you e-mail without even knowing your Gmail address. But you can easily opt out of that.
Don't want strangers on Google+ to start inundating your Gmail inbox? No problem. You can control or completely turn off this option.
On Thursday, the search giant announced a new feature that would let anyone on Google+ e-mail fellow users without having to find out their actual Gmail address. Respond to such an e-mail, and your address is then revealed to the other person.
Anticipating that many people might not want to receive e-mail from total strangers, Google lets you fine-tune this setting. Here's how:
- Open your Gmail account. Click on the gear icon in the top right and select Settings from the menu.
- In the General tab on the Settings page, look for the section that says: Email via Google+.
- Click on the dropdown menu next to "Who can email you via your Google+ profile?" You can pick one of four choices: Anyone on Google+, Extended Circles, Circles, or No One. Make your selection and then click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.
Google has also posted a Help page to explain how to tweak this setting. The new feature will roll out to all Gmail and Google+ users over the next couple of days, according to Google. When that happens, you'll receive an e-mail with more information and a link to the setting. But with the steps above, you can control the new feature before it even reaches you.