Warning: Warning Warning!

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Ok, so I got a 'warning' in email this morning, and I realized, "It's cabin-fever season!"

Yano, that time of year when everyone actually sits down at their computers 'cause it's too cold outside to do anything else?

There must be a lack of oxygen in the house from all the extra breathing going on inside, or something.

Anyway, this is the season for 'warnings'.  You will get them soon, I'm sure.  I just got my first one.  Here's some excerpts:

Subject: FW: huge virus coming!!!! PLEASE READ AND FORWARD ON!!! 

  Hi All, I checked with Norton Anti-Virus, and they are gearing up for this virus!

  I checked Snopes (URL above:), and it is for real!!

  Get this E-mail message sent around to your contacts ASAP.

  PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CONTACTS!

  You should be alert during the next few days. Do not open any message with an attachment entitled 'POSTCARD FROM HALLMARK,' regardless of who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens A POSTCARD IMAGE, which 'burns' the whole hard disc C of your computer. This virus will be received from  someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

 If you receive a mail called' POSTCARD,' even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately.  

This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus.  This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

 COPY THIS E-MAIL, AND SEND IT TO YOUR FRIENDS. REMEMBER: IF YOU SEND IT TO THEM, YOU WILL BENEFIT ALL OF US.

Now, this is actually a pretty creative hoax.  It would have been improved if the URL referred to actually was listed (should be the Hallmark, below).
The 'virus' in question (the Hallmark Postcard trojan horse) is nasty, if you get it.

However, this text is really a rehash of the Olympic Torch Virus.

In any case, it's not a real virus.  It's a 'wetware' virus (infects the part of the system past the keyboard and monitor).

Now, I have to note (given that it's Xmas season, and people might be considering new computers), that the TCO (total cost of ownership) might SEEM high when you look at list price comparing a Windows PC to a Mac, but when you think of the TIME that you NEVER SPEND on the Mac wondering if you are infected (or diagnosing failed anti-virus software), it's a lot cheaper.

Of course, Linux is just as safe, and it's completely free.

And, still, most people don't *need* the computing power I purchased back in 1986.  Most people can't even use their mail-merge function (which is what I purchased Word 2.0 for DOS for in 1986). 

If you can browse the internet and it looks ok, and runs fast, and you can send and receive emails, and play games, then WTF?

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This page contains a single entry by writch published on November 27, 2008 8:36 AM.

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