Etiquette of Sending Anonymous Emails
"Leak" website lets users send anonymous emails to friends, coworkers.
— -- Does your co-worker smell? Want to tell someone their significant other is a cheater?
There's now an easy way to send someone a message you wouldn't dare say to their face.
A website called "Leak" allows users to send anonymous emails, only specifying whether it's from a friend, family member, coworker, friend of a friend or the even vaguer: "someone."
The Best Way to Annoy Your Co-Workers
Travel Etiquette: Don't be Late for Breakfast at a B&B
Travel Etiquette: Sunburns and Airplanes
Some of the top leaks are posted on the website for others to sneak a peek.
"You're the sexiest and hottest manager I've ever had," a leak from a coworker said.
One person used it to let a friend know they were using them. "I am just hanging out with you because you know a lot of people. That's it," the note said.
A "friend of a friend" used it to send a bizarre message commenting on the recipient's appearance.
"I think you're so sexy, even if you're fat," it said.
Leak has a list of "do's and don'ts" and urges its users to "use anonymity for good."
However, Peter Post, a director of the Emily Post Institute and the author of "The Etiquette Advantage in Business," said he couldn't think of an example where an anonymous email could be better than attaching your name to a message.
"I just think you should take responsibility for the things you are saying to people," he said.
Recipients of anonymous emails may have some negative reactions, such as: "Why doesn't this idiot have enough gumption to say who they are?" Post said.
"It’s the person who sends the anonymous note who tells someone they have body odor. Think about how the person receives it. Not very well," he noted.
The bottom line, Post said, is that "you want to take responsibility."
Related Stories
ABC News Live