"Who's Snooping On Your E-mail?": Richard Smith explains one way to find out

Here's a quick and easy method to see if one's email messages are being read by someone else.

The steps are:

1. Set up a Hotmail account.

2. Set up a second email account with a
non-U.S. provider. (eg. Rediffmail.com)

3. Send messages between the two accounts
which might be interesting to the NSA.

4. In each message, include a unique URL
to a Web server that you have access to its
server logs. This URL should only
be known by you and not linked to from
any other Web page. The text of the
message should encourage an NSA monitor
to visit the URL.

5. If the server log file ever shows this
URL being accessed, then you know that
you are being snooped on. The IP address
of the access can also provide clues
about who is doing the snooping.

Besides monitoring the NSA, this same technique can be used if you suspect your email account password has been stolen or if a family member or coworker is reading your email on your computer of the sly.