Ervin M--please note this is NOT true--- The following article discusses
it. You can always check out these urban legends BEFORE sending them on at
this website: http://urbanlegends.about.com/
This is from about.com urban legends section, where it was listed among
other current hoaxes---
>This One'll Kill You!
> Dateline: 05/08/00
By David Emery
If you thought the "Love Letter" virus that
infected millions of computers
worldwide recently at a cost of billions of
dollars was a scourge, wait till you get a
load of the "Klingerman Virus."
According to email alerts circulating since
April, this newly discovered bug isn't the
kind that will kill your computer - it's the
kind that will kill you.
Here's the text of the alert:
I feel it is vital to inform all of my
friends about this.
This is an alert about a virus in the
original sense of
the word...one that affects your body, not
your hard
drive.
There have been 23 confirmed cases of
people attacked by
the Klingerman Virus, a virus that arrives
in your real
mail box, not your e-mail in box.
Someone has been mailing large blue
envelopes, seemingly
at random, to people inside the US. On the
front of the
envelope in bold black letters is printed,
"A gift for you
from the Klingerman Foundation." When the
envelopes are
opened, there is a small sponge sealed in
plastic. This
sponge carries what has come to be known
as the Klingerman
Virus, as public health officials state
this is a strain
of virus they have not previously
encountered.
When asked for comment, Florida police
Sergeant Stetson
said, "We are working with the CDC and the
USPS, but have
so far been unable to track down the
origins of these
letters. The return addresses have all
been different, and
we are certain a remailing service is
being used, making
our jobs that much more difficult."
Those who have come in contact with the
Klingerman Virus
have been hospitalized with severe
dysentery. So far seven
of the twentythree victims have died.
There is no
legitimate Klingerman Foundation mailing
unsolicited
gifts.
If you receive an oversized blue envelope
in the mail
marked,"A gift from the Klingerman
foundation", DO NOT
open it. Place the envelope in a strong
plastic bag or
container, and call the police
immediately. The "gift"
inside is one you definitely do not want.
PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU CARE
ABOUT.
>>>> With all due respect to earnest forwarders of this message, the
only threat posed by
the "Klingerman Virus" is an outbreak of
laughter. It's a gag - a parody of phony
computer virus alerts, most of which are
worded similarly, including sentences
like, "If you receive a message labeled
such-and-such, DO NOT OPEN IT!"
The question people should be asking themselves
is why, with seven victims dead (supposedly) and
the police and Centers for Disease Control
investigating, we haven't heard a word about this
in the press. By contrast, the "Love Letter"
computer virus, which killed no one, made
international headlines in less than 24 hours!
As with the "deadly bananas" hoax earlier this
year, the intent of the Klingerman prank is to
scare
as many people as possible while amusing or
annoying the rest. It appears to be doing a very
good job on all scores, partly because most
Internet
users are unaware of how much medical
misinformation circulates by forwarded email.
Ever the dutiful debunker, I called the CDC in
Atlanta to get the official word on Klingerman.
The woman I spoke with was terse.
"Is this the one about the virus in the
envelope? It's not true," she said. "There's
no such thing."
End of phone call.
I can't blame her for being abrupt. With real
epidemics of real diseases threatening
lives worldwide, the CDC has better things to
do with its time than answer
questions about ridiculous Internet rumors
that aren't true.
If only I could say the same for myself.
Updates:
CDC Press Release about the 'Klingerman
Virus'
May 17, 2000
'Klingerman' Hoax Causes Neighborhood
Evacuation
Associated Press, May 23, 2000
Health Officials Warn of Email Hoax
Reuters, May 23, 2000
Internet Health Rumors
Info on recent medical scares
Camilla Flintermann, CG for Peter 82/70/55
Oxford, Ohio
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