tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Thu Aug 26 11:02:40 2004

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Virus Mail (not) on the list

Mark E. Shoulson ([email protected]) [KLI Member] [Hol po'wI']

We had a few emails come through this list this month sent by a computer 
virus (actually, a worm).  Please note a few things about computer 
viruses/worms/other malware:

(1) Just because the header says it's coming from person X, that does 
not mean that person X's computer is actually infected.  (I get dozens 
of emails a week of virus-mails supposedly from me that are bouncing, 
and I *know* my computers aren't infected).  When one of these programs 
takes over a computer, not only does it mail itself to all the addresses 
it can find in the address-book, it often mails itself out *AS* those 
addresses, pretending to be coming from other people.  (In our 
particular case, one of our subscribers really did have an "infection" 
which was sending mail out.  But this is an important thing to know 
anyway, since you could conceivably get mail *masquerading* as being 
from the mailing list or something).

(2) Virus-email cannot travel through this mailing list.  The 
mailing-list software is programmed to filter out attachments.  If you 
look closely at your email-archives (you keep all the non-spam mail that 
comes into your mailbox, don't you?) you'll find that the posts in 
question were *empty*.  Just attachment-containers with nothing in 
them.  You'll see the same in the online archive at 
/tlhIngan-Hol/2004/August/  So if you got infected, 
don't blame us, it didn't come from us *or* through us.

(3) Even if it did, somehow... please, talk to us first before 
complaining to your ISP.  Our sysadmin got some flak from AOL because of 
some complaints that our list was helping to distribute the virus.  He 
doesn't need that kind of hassle, and neither does anyone else.  Please 
bring it to our attention first so we can see what's happening on our 
end before escalating it to The Net Police or whatever.

Thanks very much.

~mark

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