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Archiver > HACKETT > 1998-06 > 0896930988


From: Den&Mari <>
Subject: [HACKETT-L] Virus Warnings
Date: Wed, 03 Jun 1998 22:29:48 -0500


Folks DO NOT send virus warnings to ANY mailing list. It creates havoc
with Rootsweb servers. Think about the volume of mail, in addition to the
regular number of messages going through the servers when a virus hoax
warning is sent. How many fold does that warning generate? Rootsweb is
having problems now because of an AOL glitch, and any more it cannot
handle. More often than not, a virus warning will come from a verifiable
source....not through e-mail in general. Even if it from a friend, do NOT
pass it on. Go to the Virus Alert section of any Anti Virus program's web
page, and you will have your answer verified. That is what I have done,
and have copied the text from the IBM web site for you all to see, read,
and hopefully seek to verify yourselves. Their site is at
http://www.ibm.com Just type the word hoaxes in the search box.

Mari
Interim List Manager

As an added note, Brian Leverich, the owner of Rootsweb, had this to say on
the listowner's list in the recent past:

>>>>RootsWeb lists are *exclusively* for genealogy. Not for virus
warnings, not for missing children announcements, not for FCC
scares, not for broadcasting general interest material of any kind.

Period.

Why? Because there are 320,000 users of RootsWeb mailing lists. If
everyone chose to use these lists to broadcast whatever seems
important to them, ultimately it would dilute the content to the
point where the lists would be useless to everyone.

Moreover, it would mean we'd need bigger servers to handle the
additional load (especially since folks seem to be inclined to spam
this stuff with long CC lists). RootsWeb's costs still not being
covered by user donations, that means specifically that Karen and
Brian would have to dig deeper into their pockets to subsidize our
operations.

So please, please don't use these lists for distributing random
nongenealogical material. Thanks, B.<<<<

HOAXES (FROM IBM ANTIVRUS SITE):

A hoax will have some combination of the following factors (but not
necessarily all of them):

•It's a warning message about a virus (or occasionally a Trojan) spreading
on the Internet. (Some even describe a "Trojan horse virus." There is no
such thing.)
•It's usually from an individual, occasionally from a company, but never
from the cited source.
•It warns you not to read or download the supposed virus, and preaches
salvation by deletion.
•It describes the virus as having horrific destructive powers and often the
ability to send itself by e-mail.
•It usually has lots of words in all caps and loads of exclamation marks.
•It urges you to alert everyone you know, and usually tells you this more
than once.
•It seeks credibility by citing some authoritative source as issuing the
warning. Usually the source says the virus is "bad" or has them "worried."
•It seeks credibility by describing the virus in specious technical jargon.

A new hoax is making its way around the Internet, posing as a virus alert.
This latest twist on the "Join the Crew" hoax includes many of the hoax
heuristics you can read about in "Hypes and Hoaxes". It claims to warn you
of a "new, very malicious virus" and asks you to spread the news to as many
people as you can. It references the "RETURNED MAIL" hoax as well, claiming
that it will "attach itself to your computer components" and "render them
useless". Sources of authority are quoted as well.

This hoax claims "If you receive an e-mail titled "WIN A HOLIDAY" DO NOT
open it, it will erase everything on your hard drive. Forward this letter
out to as many people as you can."

This message is a hoax. There is no chance to win a vacation; there is no
such virus; and there is no reason to pass this message on to as many
people as you can. As with all hoaxes, the best thing you can do is to
delete it and forget about it.

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