WTC Virus Heads up

[Kansas_Jones 0]

A cousin of mine sent me a warning concerning a virus:

 

It appears to be about 9/11, entitled "WTC Survivor" (World Trade Center), and looks as if someone on your mail list sent it to you.

 

Don't open it - it will wipe out your C Drive.

 

- Kansas

[LoAmi 0]

Please, please, please, please - before you send messages to large groups, or all your friends about scary new viruses... do some research. Here's what "wtc survivor virus" got me on Google:

WTC Survivor Virus HOAX

 

A list of real virus threats and a list of hoaxes can also be found at Symantec or McAfee.

 

I've received a very large number of virus warnings by emails, with all kinds of claims about what the "viruses" could do to my computer. The more incredible the claims, of course, the less likely they're true.

 

The trouble is that there *are* a large number of nasty viruses that do pass themselves by email. In many cases, it does look like someone on your email list sent it to you. Very few of them actually do things like wipe data. The latest ones actually *steal* data. Of course... most of them only effect Microsoft Windows and/or Outlook.

 

If you practice safe computing techniques, such as:

(1) not opening up unknown attachments,

(2) not running files you got by email,

(3) keeping an up to date operating system, firewall, and virus protection,

(4) have hard-to-guess passwords,

(5) and *always* use common sense when you enter personal information on the Internet,

(6) [bonus: run software that's less prone to attack]

 

your chances of getting caught by a virus or social engineering scam are pretty slim.

 

By the way, every time I receive one of those hoax warnings, they are invariably CC-ed to everyone on the person's contact list. I make sure to send the sender back an email containing: a link to Google, all the information I've provided here, a suggestion that they send a note of correction to everyone they tried to scare by the hoax, and suggest that they apologize for clogging up people's inboxes.

[Holden 0]

luckily, i'm on a Mac...and there are what, 6 trojans and 2 security holes? ah, the wonders of spending a little time developing an OS before shoving it out onto the market... (no, i'm not trying to start "the" debate, i do get emails like this all the time from dad. lo and behold, they are false warnings he sends out to me because he got heard it from a message board)

Edited March 27, 2005 by Cadet Holden

[LoAmi 0]

Hoax emails happen to be a pet peeve of mine :-)

 

Even on a Mac (or on Linux) you still aren't completely safe. While you're unlikely to be attacked by actual security holes/trojans, you can still fall victim to a social engineering attack (most of them are stupid, but I've seen some pretty clever ones, like the eBay spoof). There, your only defense is common sense. Your likelihood of falling victim to a technical attack increases as the number of days the security holes go unpatched, so, even a Mac user should keep his/her connection firewalled and his/her OS updated regularly. Software is complicated, and there is no known OS that is free of bugs and security issues.

 

Incidentally, I get "attacked" by simple username and password guessers at least twice a day (In case you're wondering, I actually use the service, so I can't just close it down or firewall it). I assume that they're coming from 13-year olds with scripts and nothing better to do with their time.

[Kansas_Jones 0]

Thx very much for the info regarding safe practices LoAmi - I, of course, naturally assumed the "threat" was "real".

[Travis Kroells 0]

I dont know what type of virus I got a couple of days ago, but it corrupted the files of my OS, I had to do a complete system restore, and lost over 4 years of programs, music, logs, and novels that I had written.

 

If I ever find the porker who did it, Minnesota will be hard pressed to have a death penelty.

[LoAmi 0]

Just b/c your OS gets messed up does not mean you were infected by a virus! Anyway, if it wasn't a hardware failure, in most likelihood, all of your data was not really lost.

 

Next time, try recovering your data with a Knoppix CD :-)

[Seiben 0]

Really, eh? Just practise the tips Lo'Ami mentioned and you should be fine against most viruses. Investing in a good anti-virus such as Norton or Symantec also helps too.

[eagle 0]

Really, eh? Just practise the tips Lo'Ami mentioned and you should be fine against most viruses. Investing in a good anti-virus such as Norton or Symantec also helps too.

Personally i use symantecs,systems works,(the profesionial version),firewalls,etc. and

are always running in the background,quitely,but always on guard,i have intercepted

a message from symantec an advisment that a worm ,or a trojan horse has been detected and the sender(sometimes their isp)has been automatically notified that their

system is/or has been infected,and a warning to correct the problem,after looking up the problem i have come to the conclusion that we as a whole are responsible,and as stated before do have an inherent responsibility to the up keep of our own systems,and

to notify the powers that be (web master),of any said or reported possible/or real threats,by the way the notifacations were in the chat rooms during sims,this is not an

alarmist point of view,it is just an attempt to advise those that do not run the necessary

anti-virus/firewalls so necessary in todays internet enviroment to take heed and at the

very least take minimal precautions,...it will be appreciated in the end by not only them

but the internet soceity they come in contact with,or participate with regularly.... :) :P

[LoAmi 0]

This was really dredged up from the post cemetary.

[Travis Kroells 0]

Yeah...almost a year rotted :P

[Guest Vulcan3324]

Eagle, that desperate for fodder? ::snickers::

 

Good tips in here.

[STSF Seiben 0]

Eagle, that desperate for fodder? ::snickers::

 

Good tips in here.

Albeit old.. geez. Why can't people just let old topics die in peace?

[Merina 0]

that's why i throw everything away unless it's people on my address book