Begin forwarded message:
Resent-Date: Thu, 11 Jul 1996 09:35:07 -0800
Resent-From: hoytg[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]harper12.cgs.edu
Date: Thu, 11 Jul 1996 09:35:07 -0800
From: Gwen Hoyt hoytg[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]harper12.cgs.edu
Subject: WARNING ABOUT INTERNET VIRUS
Resent-To: erogers[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]harper10.cgs.edu
To: rogerse[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]cgs.edu
Resent-Message-Id: 01I6XXB3SB9G8X3QXR[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]cgs.edu
X-Vms-To: IN%"rogerse[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]cgs.edu"
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT
Begin forwarded message:
Date: Wed, 10 Jul 1996 13:33:49 -0800 (PST)
Date-Warning: Date header was inserted by clstac.is.csupomona.edu
From: dfhoyt[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]csupomona.edu (Don Hoyt)
Subject: WARNING ABOUT INTERNET VIRUS
X-Sender: DFHOYT[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]pop.is.csupomona.edu
To: hoytg[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]harper12.cgs.edu
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT
**********************************************************************
*
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
rocessor
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 e-mail message with the subject
line
reading "Good Times". Avoiding infection is easy once the file has
been
received simply by 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 there 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.
Donald F. Hoyt, PhD
Professor of Biological Sciences
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
3801 W. Temple Avenue
Pomona, CA 91768
Office Phone: 909-869-4050
FAX: 909-869-4078