URGENT!! - NEW VIRUS
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URGENT!! - NEW VIRUS
I have received this text in an e-mail from a reliable source:
"Very Urgent!!!!!!!. .>. .>If you receive an email titled: "It Takes Guts to Say Jesus" DO NOT OPEN IT. It will erase everything on your hard drive. This information was announced yesterday morning from IBM; AOL states that this is a very dangerous virus, much worse than "Melissa," and that there is NO Remedy for it at this time.. .>. .>Some very sick individual has succeeded in using the reformat function from Norton Utilities causing it to completely erase all documents on the hard drive. It has been designed to work with Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. It destroys Macintosh and IBM compatible computers.
>This is a new, very malicious virus and not many people know about it. Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book and please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this threat maybe stopped. Please practice cautionary measures and tell anyone that may have access to your computer."
Until I can establish whether or not this is a genuine or hoax warning, it would be wise to follow the advice. I will continue to dig for authentication and will post the results as a new topic.
FJJP
"Very Urgent!!!!!!!. .>. .>If you receive an email titled: "It Takes Guts to Say Jesus" DO NOT OPEN IT. It will erase everything on your hard drive. This information was announced yesterday morning from IBM; AOL states that this is a very dangerous virus, much worse than "Melissa," and that there is NO Remedy for it at this time.. .>. .>Some very sick individual has succeeded in using the reformat function from Norton Utilities causing it to completely erase all documents on the hard drive. It has been designed to work with Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. It destroys Macintosh and IBM compatible computers.
>This is a new, very malicious virus and not many people know about it. Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book and please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this threat maybe stopped. Please practice cautionary measures and tell anyone that may have access to your computer."
Until I can establish whether or not this is a genuine or hoax warning, it would be wise to follow the advice. I will continue to dig for authentication and will post the results as a new topic.
FJJP
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[quote]This information was announced yesterday morning from IBM<hr></blockquote>
No it bl**dy wasn't. We've got internal virus pages here and it isn't an announcement on them. Anyway, it is such an obvious fake that if they had bothered to read it before forwarding it then they would have realized it was a load of crap.
Tell your reliable source to check this stuff out before blindly forwarding it.... <img src="mad.gif" border="0"> <img src="rolleyes.gif" border="0">
No it bl**dy wasn't. We've got internal virus pages here and it isn't an announcement on them. Anyway, it is such an obvious fake that if they had bothered to read it before forwarding it then they would have realized it was a load of crap.
Tell your reliable source to check this stuff out before blindly forwarding it.... <img src="mad.gif" border="0"> <img src="rolleyes.gif" border="0">
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Evo7 - why is your reply couched in such vicious, superior and condescending terms? I am not a computer slouch by any means, but I don't know if it is feasible or not - it is not clear to me that it is an obvious fake. I am trying to check it out with Symantec. My contact was merely giving a heads up of a possible problem. I thought it was important to alert people - if you noted my last comment -
"Until I can establish whether or not this is a genuine or hoax warning, it would be wise to follow the advice. I will continue to dig for authentication and will post the results as a new topic."
- it urged people to be cautious, and that I would post the result of my search. If it is real, then my contact's warning may have saved a fellow Pruner a vast amount of grief.
I am afraid your attitude does little to encourage people, especially those who are not computer literate, to take anti-virus precautions. In the past I have found this forum to be friendly, helpful and tolerant of those less knowledgeable.
Please keep it that way.
FJJP
"Until I can establish whether or not this is a genuine or hoax warning, it would be wise to follow the advice. I will continue to dig for authentication and will post the results as a new topic."
- it urged people to be cautious, and that I would post the result of my search. If it is real, then my contact's warning may have saved a fellow Pruner a vast amount of grief.
I am afraid your attitude does little to encourage people, especially those who are not computer literate, to take anti-virus precautions. In the past I have found this forum to be friendly, helpful and tolerant of those less knowledgeable.
Please keep it that way.
FJJP
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Even though it is a fake, thanks for at least taking the time and effort of posting a warning
I for one would rather see a warning which turns out to be a hoax than nothing and have to rebuild a system.
I for one would rather see a warning which turns out to be a hoax than nothing and have to rebuild a system.
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My apologies, FJJP. I spend a sufficient amount of time receiving and replying to these that my irritation got the better of me - I was overly harsh.
The fact is, these things are extremely easy to check - even with no knowledge.
Try a Google search for "It takes gust to say Jesus" and virus. <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=+virus+%22It+Takes+Guts+to+Say+Jesus%22" target="_blank">Here</a> for example. You'll see that the whole page is full of URL's to pages telling you it is a hoax.
Look at the message - and then look at a <a href="http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w97m.melissa.v.html" target="_blank">real virus advisory</a>. Notice how vague this supposed warning is? The lack of URLs referencing any of it's claims? You'd think that they would at least link to the the information supposedly "announced" by IBM. You could look for the "announcement" too.
If you do understand a bit about computers, think about what the message says. It uses Norton Utilities to format the hard disk, but kills Macs too. People will have heard of that, IBM, Netscape etc., but does it sound realistic?? Why is IBM announcing it anyway?
Spotting these things isn't rocket science - honestly - and that is what is frustrating...
Regards, and apologies,
Evo.
The fact is, these things are extremely easy to check - even with no knowledge.
Try a Google search for "It takes gust to say Jesus" and virus. <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=+virus+%22It+Takes+Guts+to+Say+Jesus%22" target="_blank">Here</a> for example. You'll see that the whole page is full of URL's to pages telling you it is a hoax.
Look at the message - and then look at a <a href="http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w97m.melissa.v.html" target="_blank">real virus advisory</a>. Notice how vague this supposed warning is? The lack of URLs referencing any of it's claims? You'd think that they would at least link to the the information supposedly "announced" by IBM. You could look for the "announcement" too.
If you do understand a bit about computers, think about what the message says. It uses Norton Utilities to format the hard disk, but kills Macs too. People will have heard of that, IBM, Netscape etc., but does it sound realistic?? Why is IBM announcing it anyway?
Spotting these things isn't rocket science - honestly - and that is what is frustrating...
Regards, and apologies,
Evo.
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FJJP. This type of warning appears quite regularly.
The first action I always take before passing them on is to go to the Hoax page at the Symantic web site and check it out.
There is a list of them a mile long.
The first action I always take before passing them on is to go to the Hoax page at the Symantic web site and check it out.
There is a list of them a mile long.
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I deal with the sort of stuff on a daily basis. Not everyone understands virus hoaxes. You can usually tell it is a hoax by the following words:
"Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book and please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this threat maybe stopped."
Send to everyone you say? Ok then! But hold on... Remember chain letters? They used to say:
"Pass this letter to EVERYONE you know so that they may share in the luck and joy that this letter has bought to everyone before you."
Aha! See? Chain letters has moved into the cyber age!
. .--TB
I'm flying tomorrow. Top notch <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
"Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book and please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this threat maybe stopped."
Send to everyone you say? Ok then! But hold on... Remember chain letters? They used to say:
"Pass this letter to EVERYONE you know so that they may share in the luck and joy that this letter has bought to everyone before you."
Aha! See? Chain letters has moved into the cyber age!
. .--TB
I'm flying tomorrow. Top notch <img src="wink.gif" border="0">
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Evo, thanks for your last. You are right and I did get it wrong. Next time I will investigate before sending out a warning. In the meantime, I will advise all those I have told.
Regards, FJJP
Regards, FJJP
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Also any warning that suggests a virus will
Erase your hard drive completely. .Destroy your computer. .Render your computer useless etc etc
is an obvious fake. An axe wielding madman could destroy your PC but not a computer virus.
What I don't understand is the kick someone gets out of starting these hoaxes. All I can imagine is some spotty Billy-no-mates sitting in his bedroom wetting his pants as he sees his hoax spread around the world????
Erase your hard drive completely. .Destroy your computer. .Render your computer useless etc etc
is an obvious fake. An axe wielding madman could destroy your PC but not a computer virus.
What I don't understand is the kick someone gets out of starting these hoaxes. All I can imagine is some spotty Billy-no-mates sitting in his bedroom wetting his pants as he sees his hoax spread around the world????
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Writing as a bespectacled, if no longer spotty, Billy no-mates sitting in the Towers and who loves to see information coursing around the world I think I'm going to have to take stock of my life.
Thanks Don, you've changed everything for me.........
Thanks Don, you've changed everything for me.........
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As glamorous an occupation as it is, I don't suppose you can spend all your time in the Towers sexing herring. Now if your hoaxes stated "this virus will render access to PPRuNe impossible" the ensuing panic would be on a scale not seen since the last time there was lots of panic
