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E-MAIL AND BIOTERRORISM

Although e-mail use has been increasing steadily with the growth of Internet access, it is expected to become even more popular in the wake of the appearance of anthrax-tainted postal mail during 2001. During a period of several weeks that year, large government and industry mailrooms were closed and traditional mail was undeliverable to elected officials and employees of numerous large media outlets. The volume of e-mail sent to these individuals and companies increased noticeably during these periods, because e-mail was the easiest and safest form of written communication that could be delivered to recipients working in affected buildings. However, on the downside, e-mail is often used to spread troublesome computer viruses and worms via infected attachments.