[NCLUG] Fwd: Fw: Fw: Subject: Major virus warning

[Michael Dwyer]

I'm also going to take this opportunity to do a little education.
Read on to find out why this is a hoax, so perhaps you won't send
this on again.  E-mail hoaxes are more viral than the viruses they
are supposibly warning against.  

First, a link: http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/  If ANYONE sends me a
chainletter or a virus hoax, they get this link.  Strangly, so few of
them get the hint...  

Here we go:

> > Subject: Major virus warning
> >
> > A new virus has just been discovered that has been
> > classified by Microsoft (www.microsoft.com) and by McAfee
> > (www.mcafee.com) as the most destructive ever! This virus

Well, at the very least, this is the first virus warning I have
ever seen that actually makes reference to the right people.
McAfee, at least.  You will never see virus warnings from the
FBI, CIA, FCC, FAA, AOL, MSN, IBM, or any other group like that.
You get them from well-known wirus labs, like NAI, McAfee,
Symantec and places like CIAC and CERT.
This should be warning number one.

> > was discovered
> > yesterday afternoon by McAfee and no vaccine has yet been
> > developed. This virus simply destroys Sector Zero from the
> > > hard disk, where vital information for its functioning

CERT calls this "Technical Sounding Language".  This one is
also pretty good, so I'll let this slide...
 
> > are stored. This virus sends itself automatically to all contacts on your list with
> > > the title "A Virtual Card for You." When the supposed virtual 
> card is> opened, the computer freezes so that the user has to reboot. When the
> > ctrl+alt+del
> > keys or the reset button are pressed, the virus destroys
> > > Sector
> > Zero,
> > thus permanently destroying the hard disk.

Okay, so check this out:  When you receive it, it destroys your
computer.  But it still manages to send itself to all your contacts?