Fake your Gmail

Some strange things going on at Gmail this morning.
Google launched a new feature today that allows users of their patented Gmail email facility to set the date and time stamps on emails to some date in the past.

Pre-dating and post-dating emails has been around for a long time. You can do it in Windows using Outlook Express by just clicking on the time/date icon on the Windows toolbar and choosing whatever date and time you want your computer set to - in the past or in the future. So this new "Custom Time" feature from Google just brings the function to their web-based email program.

Why would you even want to set the date backwards on your emails? Google says do it to send un-belated birthday wishes (you know, so it doesn't look like you forgot their birthday when you really did), but Google goes on to say, "Gmail can now help you with those missed deadlines and missed opportunities." ... OHhhh ... so Google is going to be your accomplice in spoofing time/date stamps so you can supposedly still enter that contest that slipped your mind, or fake an email to your boss that was due yesterday and try to cover your sorry butt!

As I said earlier, spoofing time stamps has been around in several forms for quite a while. And the historical uses of spoofing time and dates has been the realm of unscrupulous Spam emailers and those that release virus laden emails and spyware. Do you really want to associated with those criminals by manipulating the time stamps on your emails?

New! Gmail Custom Time™
Ever wish you could go back in time and send that crucial email that could have changed everything -- if only it hadn't slipped your mind? Gmail can now help you with those missed deadlines, missed birthdays and missed opportunities.
Pre-date your messages
You tell us what time you would have wanted your email sent,
and we'll take care of the rest. Need an email to arrive 6 hours ago? No problem.

So what do you think?
Do you use Google's email facility?
Will you be using this new "feature" to spoof the time stamp on your emails?