virus alert

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Mon Oct 07, 2002 2:58 pm

I just received this information from a reliable source:

This virus is particularly severe and it is recommended that people run Live Updates with their anti virus software.

W32.Bugbear@mm is a mass-mailing worm that is rapidly spreading to Windows users. The subject and attachment name of incoming emails are randomly chosen. The attachment will have a double extension ending in .exe, .scr, or
.pif. Under no circumstances should people run any files containing these extensions!

Bugbear is particularly severe because it grants an outside party access to
not only your computer, but the network as well. It runs what's know as a
key-stroke logger (something that tracks every character you type) and
transmits results to an outside party. This is a very common way for people
to get passwords. The virus will also open ports to let a third party
connect to machines, granting them access to your files (where they can
copy, read, or delete them).

Mr Sleep · Post by **Mr Sleep** » Mon Oct 07, 2002 3:39 pm

Apparently Bugbear can mask itself to some degree from virus checkers, so the most important thing is not to open the email that contains it. The answer is fairly simple, if you get an email with an attachment (even from someone that you know) you can check the message source by right clicking on it, if you scan through all that code it will tell you what the attachment extension is. If it is a .pif just delete the email, if it is an .exe then delete it also, the worst is that the file is legitimate and they have to send it again, It's a lot better deleting that single file than the virus getting access to your credit card records...

Also if you are using Outlook Express, turn off the damn preview pane!!!

KidD01 · Post by **KidD01** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 3:31 am

New Virus Alert

Trojan Ghost Girl
Infected PC only show a scary girl face and CDROM tray open & closing randomly. There seems no damage toward programs, yet it's kinda annoying.

The virus refer to "gfg.exe" sized 106.496 b

Stilgar · Post by **Stilgar** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 3:50 am

Originally posted by Mr Sleep

Also if you are using Outlook Express, turn off the damn preview pane!!!

How can I do that?

Yshania · Post by **Yshania** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 3:57 am

Originally posted by Stilgar

How can I do that?

In the drop down menu, go into view, then layout, then uncheck the preview pane option

Stilgar · Post by **Stilgar** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 4:02 am

Originally posted by Yshania
In the drop down menu, go into view, then layout, then uncheck the preview pane option

Thank you

Yshania · Post by **Yshania** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 4:03 am

You're welcome

Perroxx · Post by **Perroxx** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 6:16 am

Check this one:

http://www.f-secure.com/bugbear/

And also, don't use Outlook!!! 99.9% of all viruses uses Outlook to spread themselves...

Shadow Sandrock · Post by **Shadow Sandrock** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 6:54 am

Yuck! Viruses!

That isn't as annoying as that damn chain letter that makes you delete the Java virus checker... if you get one that say to delete the teddy bear file, don't do it! @_@

fable · Post by **fable** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 7:31 am

Originally posted by Perroxx
And also, don't use Outlook!!! 99.9% of all viruses uses Outlook to spread themselves...

Isn't that only with the preview pane open? I've been runninig outlook for years. In all that time I've acquired one virus, and that was because one of my editors' sent along an edit of a feature for me to change that had an embedded virus.

Mr Sleep · Post by **Mr Sleep** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 8:02 am

Re: Yuck! Viruses!

Originally posted by Shadow Sandrock
That isn't as annoying as that damn chain letter that makes you delete the Java virus checker... if you get one that say to delete the teddy bear file, don't do it! @_@

Indeed, never ever delete something because an email tells you to, nothing amuses tech support more than "I just deleted system.ini because an email told me to, what should I do?"

Still it is work for us I suppose

I agree with Fable, it is the preview pains fault

Ned Flanders · Post by **Ned Flanders** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 10:13 am

Yes Fable. Running the preview panes in Outlook can activate viruses. The virus is actually embedded in the body of the message itself so with the preview pane turned on, if you were to highlight such an email, the virus can infect. It is actually a combination of flaws which uses Internet Explorer to run the virus script embedded in the email.

Best defenses and I won't say don't use outlook.

1. Good Anti virus program: pay for the yearly subscription to receive updates, run them daily, and ensure the anti virus services are always running and checking every file coming in or leaving your system on a real time basis.

2. Internet Explorer: if you use it, upgrade to version 6, service pack 1. You can also repeatedly check Microsoft's web site for continual security updates for this program.

3. It's already been said: turn off preview panes in outlook.

4. Always always always download attachments to your machine and scan them after downloading. Don't ever open an attachment directly from an email.

5. Cable modem users: find some sort of hardware (preferably) or software firewall. An 'always on' high speed Internet connection is a hacker/script kiddies dream. Put some protection on there lest your machine be comprised.

Vicsun · Post by **Vicsun** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 10:43 am

I seem to get a lot of viruses on hotmail lately - always a file wich ends on jpg.exe or zip.exe or something similar. And the mail is always written in Spanish. Anyone else experienced that?
When I once actually tried downloading it to scan it Hotmail wouldn't let me because it detected a virus (it automatically scans I guess). In a couple of days though I received the same kind of mail (something written in Spanish and an .exe), but this time it was from a person I know (also a hotmail account). I know for certain that he wouldn't send me a virus (besides he doesn't speak Spanish

), and I know he couldn't have downloaded and opened the file since Hotmail wouldn't allow to. Which leads me to my question - is it possible to for the virus to download itsself without asking me and bypassing hotmail's protectin?

Sorry for the poor explanation - I'm kind of tired right now

Ned Flanders · Post by **Ned Flanders** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 11:55 am

I don't much about how hotmail specifically and what types of virus protection/security measures they have in place on their email servers.

If they had a preview pane of sorts and a virus was very new, I suppose it is possible for the virus to move from their email server to your computer but I think it would be unlikely. Perhaps it could happen with a very new virus that hotmail wasn't already protected against.

Stilgar · Post by **Stilgar** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 3:52 pm

An easy way to prevent outlook express from sending virusses to you're adressbook is to add a contact named 0000 or something and give it a non-existing e-mail adress.
Then when the virus wants to send, it get's an error (tried this with only one virsu (don't remember the name) and only once, so no guaranties)

Ned Flanders · Post by **Ned Flanders** » Mon Oct 21, 2002 4:43 pm

Interesting stilgar. I haven't come across that before. If it works universally, it should be something implemented on every windows workstation at every company globally.

Beldin · Post by **Beldin** » Wed Oct 23, 2002 2:26 am

LISTING FRENZY Pt.4 !!!

Known Viruses :

Adam and Eve virus: Takes a couple of bytes out of your Apple
Airline virus: You're in Dallas, but your data is in Singapore.
Anita Hill virus: Lies dormant for ten years. Then executes and just
lies.
Arnold Schwarzenegger virus : Terminates and stays resident. It'll be
back.
AT&T virus : Every three minutes it tells you what great service you
are getting.
The MCI virus : Every three minutes it reminds you that you're paying
too much for the AT&T virus.
Bill Clinton virus: This virus mutates from region to region and
we're not exactly sure what it does.
Bill Clinton virus: Promises to give equal time to all processes: 50%
to poor, slow processes; 50% to middle-class processes, and 50% to rich
ones.
Bill Clinton virus: Displays only marijuana leaf bit-map files for
Windows background.
Bill Clinton virus: Protests your computer's involvement in other
computer's affairs, even though it has been having one of its own for 15
years.
Congressional Virus: Overdraws your computer.
Congressional Virus: The computer locks up, screen splits erratically
with a message appearing on each half blaming the other side for the
problem.
Al Gore virus: Causes your computer to be unable to recognize George
Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln.
Al Gore virus: Turns your computer off to save Earth's energy
resources right after displaying message instructing you to go hug a tree.
Al Gore virus: Causes your screen saver to dance like a hideous
macarana.
Bob Dole virus: Affects Word for Windows so you are unable to type
complete sentences.
Dan Quayle virus: Prevents your system from spawning any child
processes without joining into a binary network.
Dan Quayle virus: Simplye addse ane ee toe everye worde youe typee.
David Duke virus: Makes your screen go completely white.
Elvis virus: Your computer gets fat, slow, and lazy and then self
destructs, only to resurface at shopping malls and service stations across
rural America.
Federal bureaucrat virus: Divides your hard disk into hundreds of
little units, each of which do practically nothing, but all of which claim
to be the most important part of the computer.
Freudian virus: Your computer becomes obsessed with marrying its own
motherboard.
Gallup virus: Sixty percent of the PCs infected will lose 38 percent
of their data 14 percent of the time (plus or minus a 3.5 percent margin
of error).
George Bush virus: Doesn't do anything, but you can't get rid of it
until November.
Government economist virus: Nothing works, but all your diagnostic
software says everything is fine.
Jerry Brown virus: Blanks your screen and begins flashing an 800
number.
Madonna virus: If your computer gets this virus, lock up your dog!
Mario Cuomo virus: It would be a harmful virus, but thank God it
refuses to run.
Michael Jackson virus: Hard to identify because it is constantly
altering its appearance. This virus won't harm your PC, but it will trash
your car.
New World Order virus: probably harmless, but it makes a lot of
people really mad just thinking about it.
Nike virus: Just Does It!
Ollie North virus: Turns your printer into a document shredder.
Oprah Winfrey virus: Your 200MB hard drive suddenly shrinks to 80MB,
and then slowly expands back to 200MB.
Pat Buchanan virus: Shifts all your output to the extreme right of
your screen.
Paul Revere virus : This revolutionary virus does not horse around.
It warns you of impending hard disk attack---once if by LAN, twice if by
C:.
Paul Tsongas virus: Pops up on December 25 and says, "I'm not Santa
Claus."
PBS virus: Your PC stops every few minutes to ask for money.
Politically correct virus : Never calls itself a "virus", but instead
refers to itself as an "electronic microorganism".
Richard Nixon virus: Also known as the "Tricky **** Virus", you can
wipe it out but it always makes a comeback.
Right To Life virus : Won't allow you to delete a file, regardless of
how old it is. If you attempt to erase a file, it requires you to first
see a counselor about possible alternatives.
Pro-Abortion virus: Only displays A)bort A)bort A)bort.
Ross Perot virus: Activates every component in your system, just
before the whole thing quits.
Ted Kennedy virus: Crashes your computer but denies it ever happened.
Ted Turner virus: Colorizes your monochrome monitor.
Texas virus: Makes sure that it's bigger than any other file.
UK Parliament virus: splits the screen into two with a message in
each half blaming other side for the state of the system.
Warren Commission virus: Won't allow you to open your files for 75
years.

END of SPAM ! (at least in this thread

)

No worries,

Beldin, the listmaster...[insert mad laughter here]