I received the following message from Jan Schilling of General Electric. (I work with Jan as a member of the Ohio Coalition for Mathematics and Science.) You may wish to distribute the message to other networks. Bob _______________________________________________________________________________ Sender: Ohio Mathematics & Science Coalition <[log in to unmask]> Poster: Jan Schilling <[log in to unmask]> Subject: FW: Beware of the Virus ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please distribute ASAP Subject: Beware of the Virus Date: Wednesday, January 31, 1996 10:34AM Priority: High > :: > >> There is a computer virus that is being sent across the > :: > >> Internet. If you receive an e-mail message with the subject > :: > >> line "Good Times", DO NOT read the message, DELETE it > :: > >> immediately. Please read the messages below. Some miscreant > :: > >> is sending e-mail under the title "Good Times" nation wide, > :: > >> if you get anything like this, DON'T DOWN LOAD THE FILE! It > :: > >> has a virus that rewrites your hard drive, obliterating > :: > >> anything on it. Please be careful and forward this mail to > :: > >> anyone you care about. > :: > >> > :: > >> ************************************************************* > :: > >> > :: > >> WARNING!!!!!!! INTERNET VIRUS > :: > >> > :: > >> The FCC released a warning last Wednesday concerning a > :: > >> matter of major importance to any regular user of the > :: > >> Internet. Apparently a new computer virus has been > :: > >> engineered by a user of AMERICA ON LINE that is unparalleled > :: > >> in its destructive capability. Other more well-known viruses > :: > >> such as "Stoned", "Airwolf" and "Michaelangelo" pale in > :: > >> comparison to the prospects of this newest creation by a > :: > >> warped mentality. What makes this virus so terrifying, said > :: > >> the FCC, is the fact that no program needs to be exchanged > :: > >> for a new computer to be infected. It can be spread through > :: > >> the existing e-mail systems of the Internet. Once a computer > :: > >> is infected, one of several things can happen. If the > :: > >> computer contains a hard drive, that will most likely be > :: > >> destroyed. If the program is not stopped, the computer's > :: > >> processor will be placed in an nth-complexity infinite binary > :: > >> loop -which can severely damage the processor if left running > :: > >> that way too long. > :: > >> > :: > >> Unfortunately, most novice computer users will not > :: > >> realize what is happening until it is far too late. Luckily, > :: > >> there is one sure means of detecting what is now known as the > :: > >> "Good Times" virus. It always travels to new computers the > :: > >> same way in a text email message with the subject line > :: > >> reading "Good Times". Avoiding infection is easy once the > :: > >> file has been received- not reading it! The act of loading > :: > >> the file into the mail server's ASCII buffer causes the "Good > :: > >> Times" mainline program to initialize and execute. > :: > >> > :: > >> The program is highly intelligent- it will send copies of > :: > >> itself to everyone whose e-mail address is contained in a > :: > >> receive-mail file or a sent-mail file, if it can find one. It > :: > >> will then proceed to trash the computer it is running on. The > :: > >> bottom line here is - if you receive a file with the subject > :: > >> line "Good Times", delete it immediately! Do not read it" > :: > >> Rest assured that whoever's name was on the "From" line was > :: > >> surely struck by the virus. Warn your friends and local > :: > >> system users of this newest threat to the Internet! It could > :: > >> save them a lot of time and money. > :: > >> > :: > >>> E N D O F N O T E --