CodingHorror posted about a service (called Yelp) asking for your e-mail password, and how terribly bad an idea that is. They pointed out that many people are not technically savvy enough to realize how much of a disaster that can be.

This is worth reiterating a million times over. As their article pointed out, your e-mail password is the equivalent to the keys to your house. You likely shove everything into your e-mail account. When you forget your passwords to other sites, the forget password / reset password usually goes to your e-mail address. You may have financial data in there, tax information, bank information, or even sensitive data for your job.

Depending on just how much you have stored in your e-mail and how many sites use it as their key to your identity, giving out the password to your e-mail account could be as bad as giving your social security number to someone you’ve never met, trusting that they will keep it safe, and not abuse it or let other people see the number.

NEVER GIVE ANYONE YOUR E-MAIL ACCOUNT PASSWORD.

NEVER GIVE ANYONE YOUR E-MAIL ACCOUNT PASSWORD.

NEVER GIVE ANYONE YOUR E-MAIL ACCOUNT PASSWORD.

Go read the article, and forward it on to anyone in your family who might be new enough at this whole internet thing to trust anyone with the keys to their house computer.