This from TOURBUS a good weekly newsletter that is free to its
subscribers......and no I am not associated with them in any
way except as a happy subscriber!
You have already been told of informational sites to help rid
yourself of the Happy99.Exe if you have it and sites to help
prevent you from getting it in the first place.
Hope this helps someone! ........Jack
---------------------------------------------------------------------
BEWARE OF HAPPY99.EXE ... OR IS IT HAPPY2000.EXE ... OR HAPPY.EXE ... OR
NOTAVIRUS.EXE ... OR ...?
---------------------------------------------------------------------
MSNBC reporter Bob Sullivan is at it again, this time warning people to
beware of a file named "happy99.exe" because it is actually "a computer
worm ... making its way around the Internet, sending hundreds of copies
of itself via e-mail attachments and newsgroup postings." [Quote from
http://www.msnbc.com/news/235662.asp].
Brace yourself folks: the story is true. There is indeed a file out
there named "happy99.exe," and infected versions of this file will
indeed do some nasty things to your computer.
Before you start to panic like the millions of other Internet users who
have read Sullivan's article, though, ask yourself the following:
1. How hard is it to rename a computer file? Could *YOU* do it?
2. Do you think that someone savvy enough to deliberately
distribute a computer virus over the Internet also knows how to
rename a computer file?
3. How likely do you think it is that someone will rename
the infected file "happy99.exe" and redistribute that infected
file under another file name?
Obviously, the answer to all of these questions is "DUH!" Any parent
who has inadvertently left his or her computer unattended for even a
minute can attest to the fact that even preschoolers know how to rename
computer files. [On most computers, you click on the file once to
select it, wait a second, click on the file's name, and then start
typing; on Windows machines you can also right click over the file and
then select "Rename" from the pull-down menu]. Folks, if preschoolers
can rename computer files, so can Net menaces.
As for the question about the possibility of someone renaming
"happy99.exe" and redistributing it under another name, not only am I
certain that it is possible, I will bet it has already happened. And
if that doesn't send a chill down your spine, this will: there are over
2.8 TRILLION possible file names out there, and every single one could
contain a virus, Trojan Horse, or worm.
Fortunately, the best way to protect yourself from Happy99 and tens of
thousands of other computer viruses is to purchase an antivirus program
and update your virus definitions often (at least once a week). Norton
AntiVirus currently scans for 21,219 different viruses, Trojan Horses,
and worms, including the "happy99" worm (and, unlike our friendly MSNBC
reporter, Norton AntiVirus doesn't foolishly assume that the happy99
worm only infects files named "happy99.exe." Instead, Norton scans ALL
files, regardless of their names, for both the happy99 worm and the
21,218 other viruses Norton knows about).
The other thing you can do to protect yourself from Happy99 and other
computer viruses is to follow this advice:
If you see an executable file (files that end in ".exe") in a
place where it doesn't belong (like attached to an email letter),
or if you receive a file and have no earthly idea where the file
came from or what the file does, DON'T DOUBLE-CLICK THE FILE!
Just throw out the file and move on with your life.
Or, as Rob Rosenberger so eloquently put it, "beware any file sent
by someone you don't know. Beware any file sent by someone you DO
know."
As you can see, warning people to beware of a particular file name
(like happy99.exe) is, at best, foolish. There are 2.8 trillion
possible file names out there, and every one could contain a virus.
Even worse, knowing the name of a file that contains a virus does you
no good because of how easy it is to rename computer files.
In other words, you can ignore virus warnings that tell you to watch
out for only one file name, even if those warnings come from MSNBC.
***********************************************************
E. Jack Savely CG for Jeannette 60/38/37 Topeka, KS
[log in to unmask]
***********************************************************
KANSAS - 'THE WHEAT STATE' HOME OF THE SUNFLOWER AND 'TOTO'
Ad Astra per Aspera - 'To the Stars through Difficulty'
***********************************************************
