It has recently come to light that by signing up to Google Calendar, one can find out the name used to register any Gmail account. This is a serious issue for those who have used their real names, but prefer the information stays private. The thing is that by getting access to such data, a spammer can deliver a personalized message and fool the recipient into thinking it is a legitimate e-mail. It all boils down to how much you value your privacy and how much of a threat you consider this to be.

"This is not a security issue. It was originally incorporated into the product to make it easier to send Calendar invites to Gmail users. However, we are currently taking steps to remove it," a Google spokesperson commented.

In order for a spammer to get hold of your name, you do not necessarily have to be registered with Google Calendar. He has to, but you don't. Here is a simple way a spammer can employ to find out your name: create a new calendar event and invite a Gmail user. Even if the user is not registered with Google Calendar, you will receive a message that contains the name used to register that Gmail account.

For those who use Gmail for business purposes for example, this is not a big deal because the e-mail address is similar to their real name. For example John Smith address is something like john.smith@gmail.com or jsmith@gmail.com. People who didn't bother entering their real name when registering with Gmail are also in the clear.

"For me this isn't much of a problem, I'm incredibly easy to track down and my e-mail address has my name in it, but I know for others this could be quite an unwelcome surprise. Lets [sic] hope Google fixes this soon," says Holden Kanau.