******* VIRUS ALERT - IRC/Stages.worm ********
 

******* VIRUS ALERT - IRC/Stages.worm ********

[from mcAfee.com]

IRC/Stages.worm is an Internet worm that began spreading
rapidly on 6/19. McAfee AVERT has assessed it as a HIGH-RISK
threat. McAfee.com Clinic users who used VirusScan Online
after 6/16 have protection against this worm. The worm uses
Microsoft Outlook to send copies of itself to all entries in
the address book and through installations of Pirch, ICQ and
mIRC.* It also spreads to all available mapped drives on
your system.

This worm will arrive in an email message with this format:

SUBJECT: "Funny", "Jokes", or "Life Stages", sometimes
followed by "Text"

CONTENT: "The male and female stages of life"

ATTACHMENT: "LIFE_STAGES.TXT.SHS"
(the suffix ".SHS" may be hidden)

If the attachment is run, the user sees a list of jokes
while the worm infects the system and attempts to send
copies of itself to all addresses in Outlook address book,
as well as through the other channels mentioned above.

* Pirch is an internet relay chat client for Microsoft
Windows 95/98/NT, mIRC is a shareware IRC chat client for
Windows and ICQ lets you initiate IRC style chat sessions -
it alerts you when your friends are online and lets you chat
with them.

bugger.

Have you noticed that all these recent viruses attack Microsoft Outlook/Outlook Express! I guess the best protection from these is to use Netscape communicator?

Or Eudora Pro, it's free now!