Post by Admin on Sept 2, 2004 18:06:13 GMT -5
****Thread update**** Please visit lph -- a cyberjournal site for most recent info about spyware, hoaxes, viruses & other parasites, also how they affect users of "The Platform."
This is still good info.
12/10/2004
****end of update****
website.lineone.net/~zyra/ms-mess2.htm
www.snopes.com/computer/virus/patch.asp
I'm in a rush, so I'll just send you there to read all about it. Both descriptions are the same. I found the first one by googling for the name of the hoax. Once I identified it as a hoax, I checked to see what the good people at snopes.com had to say. You probably know of other resources for checking out virus and spyware hoaxes.
I received many copies of this hoax email. It certainly looks corporate and convincing, but I googled it and found the above reference. Sure enough, what is shown above is the exact email I received.
I decided to be daring and test my level of protection, using my nonwork, family computer: I did a system restore point and backed up a few important things first, then tried to run the supposed "update" through my Yahoo mail program which scans attachments for viruses. Yep, it caught it -- told me I couldn't download the "update" because it contained a virus. Good ol' Yahoo!
You can decide for yourself whether to feel sympathy for Microsoft as the target of such attacks or feel that the company deserves what it gets for setting an industry standard of providing buggy programs. I just feel bad for unsuspecting MS product users who don't know enough to protect themselves. And I feel bad that those of us who do know to protect ourselves have to spend so much time with antispyware and antivirus programs, and with researching downloads and emails to make sure that what we're told is indeed true. I guess this is the price we pay for the free net resources we use every day.
In this case the "From" line clearly signals that this is not a legitimate update:
"MS Corporation Security Support" <yovlnlfqwrfppn@technet.com>
This is still good info.
12/10/2004
****end of update****
website.lineone.net/~zyra/ms-mess2.htm
www.snopes.com/computer/virus/patch.asp
I'm in a rush, so I'll just send you there to read all about it. Both descriptions are the same. I found the first one by googling for the name of the hoax. Once I identified it as a hoax, I checked to see what the good people at snopes.com had to say. You probably know of other resources for checking out virus and spyware hoaxes.
I received many copies of this hoax email. It certainly looks corporate and convincing, but I googled it and found the above reference. Sure enough, what is shown above is the exact email I received.
I decided to be daring and test my level of protection, using my nonwork, family computer: I did a system restore point and backed up a few important things first, then tried to run the supposed "update" through my Yahoo mail program which scans attachments for viruses. Yep, it caught it -- told me I couldn't download the "update" because it contained a virus. Good ol' Yahoo!
You can decide for yourself whether to feel sympathy for Microsoft as the target of such attacks or feel that the company deserves what it gets for setting an industry standard of providing buggy programs. I just feel bad for unsuspecting MS product users who don't know enough to protect themselves. And I feel bad that those of us who do know to protect ourselves have to spend so much time with antispyware and antivirus programs, and with researching downloads and emails to make sure that what we're told is indeed true. I guess this is the price we pay for the free net resources we use every day.
In this case the "From" line clearly signals that this is not a legitimate update:
"MS Corporation Security Support" <yovlnlfqwrfppn@technet.com>