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28 Nov 08 - 05:52 PM (#2503845) Subject: Postcard virus alert From: JeffB I don't know how reliable this info is, but I have just been told of a new and extremely destructive virus going around. It is in an e-mail entitled "Postcard" or "Postcard from Hallmark", and appears to be from someone on your contact list. If you open it, it will copy itself to everyone on your contact list and then delete everything on your hard drive. |
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28 Nov 08 - 05:54 PM (#2503846) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: Folkiedave You might find it useful to read this.... http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_postcard_virus.htm |
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28 Nov 08 - 07:26 PM (#2503894) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: treewind I've been getting those fake Hallmark (and other brands) e-card spams for months, years even. The only time I ever received a real e-card the email named the sender in the subject line and it was somebody I knew. If the email doesn't say who sent it I delete it as spam without a moment's thought. Most of them get dumped by spamassassin anyway but a few get through. The spammy ones do contain a virus, or a piece of malware that typically downloads other malware and turns your machine into a slave of somebody's spam-sending network. Anahata |
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28 Nov 08 - 08:03 PM (#2503916) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: JeffB Thanks guys. As I said, I didn't know how reliable the info was. Looks like e-cards aren't to be trusted in any case. |
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29 Nov 08 - 03:14 AM (#2504025) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: Megan L I have used Jaquie Lawson ecards sucsessfully for several years and a few other trusted sites without any problems. |
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01 Dec 08 - 05:13 AM (#2504678) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: Bonnie Shaljean Jaquie Lawson's e-cards are absolutely gorgeous - the only thing that worries me is the danger of something which pretends to be one of hers, but isn't. Even when it's purportedly from a friend, there are so many name-fakes in the sender's line these days that I don't feel confident of being able to tell spoofs from the real thing. I tend to just hit the Delete key. |
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01 Dec 08 - 05:34 AM (#2504692) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: JohnInKansas Although the first reported email is affirmed to be a hoax by Snopes, it must be noted that a very few months ago there were some emails with "click to receive your card" that claimed to be from Hallmark and the link directed you to a URL that looked like a Hallmark Card site, but wasn't. The purpose of that scam was to download a small "bot" when you clicked to see your card at the site. The bot would then call home later to download other malware that allowed the "botmaster" to take over control of your machine to send junk and/or to propogate the same bot to others. That site was shut down quite quickly (according to Hallmark), and the email described above has been circulating literally for years and may be assumed to be unrelated to the real one; but the threat still exists that anything you receive that contains a link - especially if it's unexpected, even if "from a friend" - has the potential to take you to places where you will not enjoy the party. I'm unable to convince "other members of the household" that click/cut/paste smartass cutesies are unmitigated CRAP and should never be "clicked." My own preferred procedure is to email the purported sender to "thank them for their card," and pointedly to inform them that I don't click on that sort of stuff so they need to tell me what it looked like. (If it's a real friend, and if they confirm that they did send it, I may promise - in a second email - to look at it later. I may or may not actually look, depending on just what "favors" are promised.) Of course I have so few friends (who might do that sort of thing) that I don't have to send many such emails. John |
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01 Dec 08 - 09:10 AM (#2504847) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: Folkiedave Mailwasher helps. Wouldn't live without it. |
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01 Dec 08 - 09:56 AM (#2504893) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: Bonnie Shaljean Seconded. Free, too. In case anyone is unfamiliar with it: http://www.mailwasher.net/download/?q=download In fact, I think the Pro version is well worth the £$€ |
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01 Dec 08 - 04:19 PM (#2505265) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: BB I've been using 'Birthday Alarm' for years, and it has never caused me any problems, nor, as far as I am aware, to the people I have send e-cards to. Barbara |
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01 Dec 08 - 06:51 PM (#2505379) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: JohnInKansas BB - You may have found a site that you trust, but the persons receiving your cards may not know that it's reliable. That means that if they know what the hazards are, or if they're in an office where security is enforced, they may not ever see your trite little "gift." And "training" them by making "cards" a habit can't do much other than to make them less cautious when the phony one comes in. I'd much rather get a personal email written by a friend that just says "Congratulations, ya ol' fart. Y'er a year older," or that tells me what my friend is planning for the holiday. (And your friends probably would too, if you weren't too lazy(?) to write.) John |
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02 Dec 08 - 02:48 PM (#2506114) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: BB Well, thank you John, for making assumptions about me and my friends. I object to you saying that my 'gifts' are 'trite', and that I'm too lazy to write. The reason that I use Birthday Alarm is that it enables me to keep track of all my friends' birthdays and anniversaries. I can't afford to send them all cards in the post, although I do so for special birthdays or anniversaries, and I spend a lot of time searching the site for an appropriate e-card, so laziness doesn't come into it. Barbara |
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02 Dec 08 - 02:49 PM (#2506117) Subject: RE: Postcard virus alert From: BB Oh, by the way, this thread would perhaps be more appropriate as a BS, although I have found some quite fun and suitable musical ones! Barbara |