Can email message be infected?
Plain electronic mail messages with pure text and contain no executable code will not be infected. However, files attached to the message may be infected. If you receive an e-mail with attached files from an unknown source, the best approach is to scan it before running the file or opening it in Word or Excel. If you open the file attachments directly, you risk infecting your computer. The latest generation of antivirus software can usually be configured to scan e-mail attachments before you can open them.
