Cyndi's List - FAQ
About Virus Warnings via E-mail
Please do not forward copies of e-mail virus warnings to others online. 99% of the viruses you hear about will end up being a hoax or a chain-letter which is propogated merely for mischief. Don't panic when you receive messages like this, but instead investigate the virus and educate your friends online.
Please be aware that it is not possible to obtain a virus in an e-mail message. The only way that you can get a virus via e-mail is by receiving an attached file with the e-mail message. Then you would also have to actually open the attached file in order to activate the virus. The attachment would have to be an executable file, ending with a .exe file extension. If you receive any executable files via e-mail be sure to run your virus scanning software on that file BEFORE you run the file itself. If you receive such a file from a stranger or if you are uncomfortable with the circumstances in any way, be sure to DELETE the file and do not run it. There can also be macro viruses contained within Word documents which end with a .doc file extension. If you receive a Word doc via e-mail attachment be sure to run your virus scanning software on the file or DELETE the file if you are unsure of its origin.
To protect yourself against viruses while online be sure to run your virus scanning software regularly and update the virus signature list monthly. I use McAfee's Virus Scan. It runs constantly in the background while I work on my computer - online or offline. It checks all files BEFORE I open them or run them. That way it is a no-brainer for me and I don't have to worry about viruses. I have been online for more than 4 years now and I send and receive over 200 e-mail messages each day. I also send and receive e-mail attachments on a regular basis. I have NEVER received a virus in all this time online.
Here are two very important online resources that you should bookmark and visit whenever you hear of suspected viruses. Both of these sites are quite valuable and contain some very sound advice, facts, etc. regarding viruses, hoaxes and myths. Be sure to pass the names and addresses for these sites on to your friends as well:
U.S. Dept. of Energy Computer Incident Advisory Capability (CIAC)
http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/CIACHoaxes.html
Computer Virus Myths
http://www.kumite.com/myths/
You might like to also visit a the following web page that I put online regarding these and similar issues: Internet Stuff You Need to Know
|
Cyndi's List Blog
