Can someone please help me? I was out tonight and someone had a nasty virus on their computer, they said it came from me! Well I update Norton at least twice a week and do a system scan once a week. And for added protection I have mail washer and any unknown emails I delete or bounce.
The Virus these people received was bad enough they had to get a guy to come fix their computer and from what they tell me he told them that it is form an email from me!! How can a tech tell which email it came from with out opening it? Was this guy full of it and why would nothing I do help???
The infected email almost certainly was NOT sent from your machine. It could have originated from any infected computer to which you sent a normal, uninfected email.
Email viruses often disguise their origins by forging the email headers. Because each header contains information about the sender, altering it causes the email to appear to come from some other sender.
Typically, the virus would read the headers from many of the emails on the computer, and insert the information in the infected emails. The information is often further altered to make the email's route untraceable, keeping the true originating computer completely anonymous.
The tech jumped the gun in identifying your machine as the culprit, and this is somewhat understandable -- the capabilities and sophistication of viruses change continuously, and it's difficult to remain current.
Feel free to print copies of this reply for your friends, and make sure the tech gets a copy.
New worms/virii (Klez and bugbear mainly) often uses a technique known as "spoofing." When it performs its email routine. it can use a randomly chosen address that it finds on an infected computer as the "From:" address, numerous cases have been reported in which users of uninfected computers received complaints that they sent an infected message to someone else.
For example, Linda Anderson is using a computer that is infected with W32.Klez.H@mm. Linda is not using a antivirus program or does not have current virus definitions. When W32.Klez.H@mm performs its emailing routine, it finds the email address of Harold Logan. It inserts Harold's email address into the "From:" portion of an infected message that it then sends to Janet Bishop. Janet then contacts Harold and complains that he sent her an infected message, but when Harold scans his computer, Norton AntiVirus does not find anything--as would be expected--because his computer is not infected.
I know people that have received up to 50 returned email a day indicating they have sent an infected email to someone. Problem was, they never sent anything. Until the infected computer is found and the virii cleaned, get ready to get a few of these returned emails now.
Send your friends to the Symantec website and have them do a search for Klez. They can read all about it in there. Then, send the "tech" there as well. Make sure you ask the tech for an apology and politely suggest he stay abreast of the new virii out there and how they operate !!
Your friends obviously don't know how to protect their computer and you do know how. Perhaps you could volunteer to show them how to update their anti-virus software, or install anti-virus protection if they don't have an anti-virus program installed?
Thanks for your post!
Dwight
Posts: 4343 | Location: Anchorage, AK | Registered: 06-05-02
Great advice Dwight.. Many out there just don't realize that to surf the net and use email these days without an active up to date av program running is tantamount to Russian Roulette.
You may get away with it for awhile, but sooner or later, the loaded chamber is bound to come up !!
I thought I was doing everything right. I think the tech is one I had problems with in the past. I will have to find out what this person uses for anti virus. Thanks again.
