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by spc476 1039 days ago
I have a Gmail account [1] and I regularly get email for other people who share my name (at least three others). I find it amazing they think that's their email address (or other people think that they'll reach the right person by just <firstname><lastname>@gmail.com).

[1] Not my primary account but I got it to give Gmail a try when it was first opened to the public. I personally found it 'meh' but kept the account for testing purposes with my own email server.

2 comments

I was very happy to get the non-numbered version of my very common name back when gmail was new and invite-only.

It has turned out to be a monkey's paw wish, though. I get medical records, legal filings, private and personal correspondence, bills, everything. Trying to contact anyone involved to let them know that I'm not the me they think I am barely works. It's both maddening, and bizarre to me that so many people don't know their own email address, for genuinely important stuff.

Same here, I have access to so much private data from homonyms.
My username on Google is same as here, and I occasionally get emails for a Barbara with my last name who apparently mistyped her email when buying a car a few years ago.