Can't be too UNIX centric. With the advent of MS Mail and CC:Mail that have SMTP gateways, they automagically convert uuencoded files to attachments in the native format. That is, when you send me a message with a uuencoded file at the end, my mail gateway uudecodes and puts the attachemnt in my mail messas as a clickable icon. NOW, all you got to do is convince me to doubble click on this (virus exe) and bingo!, I'm dead. Question: Has anyone tried to infect or destroy an NT box with some known virus. NT's security model could prevent this (I.E. trying to write to a restricted file or stay resident...). But I'm not sure what is secured since almost all users use NT workstation as "Administrator". 2 -- C --

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On Dec 7, 1:04am, ADAM GERSTEIN, _THE_ MACGURU wrote:

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Need I remind you of a certain Robert T. Morris? Does the "Internet Worm" mean anything to you? Sure, it wasn't actual email, but it did use email and other means of transport to cripple the net in a matter of hours.

The Internet Worm used the sendmail DEBUG mode to execute commands on a remote system. It did not propogate itself via email messages, which was what the original (ridiculous) warning claimed.

I can't feel a lot of sympathy for people who took this announcement seriously. Such stupidity reaps its own rewards.

Although the concept of "text viruses" seems a bit far fetched to some people, there these lovely toys known as ANSI bombs. Essentially they work in a similar method to the some techniques used in the sendmail bug, but they are MS-DOS specific, they will use embedded ANSI codes to run programs as the files is viewed... anyone know what will happen if deltree /XXX (where XXX represents an unpublished string of characters) is run from the root directory of a DOS hard disk? Its gone, quickly. Sure the files can be undeleted, but undeleting a whole disk is tricky business...

Maybe Good Times is a hoax, but ANSI bombs exist and using a DOS ANSI text viewer will surely be a foolish thing to do on any downloaded text file...

If anyone feels the need for proof I collected a few a while back, but really don't see the need to post them...heh heh.

Adam Philipp

PS: Please no comments about superiority of MACs or LINUX boxs because they are immune to ANSI boms...that ought to be clear enough...

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