I realize this might be a dumb question, but is there any way a person can do business on the 'net without giving out a credit card?

I really only want an email address, but I don't know how to go about getting one other than my ISP's or a free email. (In case you're wondering, I don't trust my ISP after I've heard how many times they've been hacked.)

Thanks in advance for any enlightenment you can provide.

Carla