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Re: virus alert

Carmen,

I hate to tell you this, but in sending out the message, you're 
actually propagating a virus.  Not an electronic one, but a social one.
Here's what Clay Shirky of panix.com (remember them from the TCP syn
attack on the news?) has to say:

   "Its for real. Its an opportunistic self-replicating email virus
   which tricks its host into replicating it, sometimes adding as many
   as 200,000 copies at a go. It works by finding hosts with defective
   parsing apparatus which prevents them from understanding that a piece
   of email which says there is an email virus and then asking them to
   remail the message to all their friends is the virus itself."

Anyhow, there's a FAQ available from the U.S. Department of Energy
Computer Incident Advisory Capability that covers the Good Times
"virus," AOL4FREE, modem tax hoax, etc...  Here's the URL:

   http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/CIACHoaxes.html

I'd worry more about your web browser than your email, given the rash
of security holes that have been discovered lately.  Make sure that
you have the latest and greatest Internet Explorer (previous versions
could run programs on your machine!) if that's what you use, and be
on the lookout for a new version of the Netscape Communicator suite
to fix the bug that allows people to download anything from your hard
drive when you connect to someone's site. 

The world may be getting smaller, but it's not any less dangerous.  :)

As a general note to those of you on the prairie mailing list, please
contact me prior to sending message of this type out.  I know that you're
doing it to benefit people on the list, and I appreciate the 
thought (really!).  But my job deals mainly with these types of issues,
so I may have some insight to offer prior without having to scare 
everyone.

Take care,

Chris

----------------------------------------------------------------------
> Forwarded message:
> Subj:    Virus Alert
> Date:    97-04-24 13:50:23 EDT
> From:    TNSTEP2
> To:      Coalition2,TNSTEP
> 
> There has been an article or two in the Nashville paper about this -
> 
> This was just forwarded to me as a new virus emergency. Please read,
> > heed, and forward A.S.A.P.!
> >>
> > Anyone who receives this must send it to as many people as you can.  It
> > is> essential that this problem be reconciled as soon as possible.  A few
> > hours> ago, someone opened an E-mail that had the subject heading of
> > "AOL4FREE.COM".>  Within seconds of opening it, a window appeared and began
> to display> all his> files that were being deleted.  He immediately shut down
> his computer,> but it> was too late.  This virus wiped him out.  It ate the
> Anti-Virus Software> that> comes with the Windows '95 Program along with
> F-Prot AVS.  Neither was> able> to detect it.  Please be careful and send
> this to as many people as> possible,> so maybe this new virus can be
> eliminated.>>
> >
> >  DON'T OPEN E-MAIL NOTING "AOL4FREE"
> >>
> > VIRUS ALERT!!!
> >
> > Be aware that there are  letters going around that you have won free Aol
> > until 1998....or  AOL 4 free......  PLEASE DELETE...... contains a virus
> > that> will wipe out your harddrive...... after you download and it>
> executes.....
> >
> >  SUBJECT AREA OF EMAIL....... CONGRATULATIONS! You are a WINNER!
> >
> >  SUBJECT AREA OF EMAIL.......AOL 4 Free - Get AOL For Free

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