Mail Virus

Mail Virus

 

Email virus is .. ?

Ø  virus that is passed by e-mail.

Ø  program that is distributed as an attachment to an e-mail message.

Ø  typically separate programs

Ø  do their damage when they’re manually executed by you

Ø  masquerade as pictures, Word files, and other common attachments, but are really EXE, VBS, PIF, and other types of executable files in disguise

Ø  hijack your e-mail program and send themselves out to all the contacts in your address book

Research about …

Ø  According to Kaspersky Lab, the research arm of the company that produces Kaspersky Anti-Virus software, e-mail viruses accounted for 90% of all virus attacks in 2001.

Examples…?

Ø  Melissa virus,

Ø  which came as an attached Word document.

Ø  It sent itself to the first 50 people in the infected users address book.

Ø  It was the fastest spreading virus ever.

Ø  many companies shut down their servers because there was so much junk mail on them.

Preventing …

Ø  Rule 1: Identification

                Understanding the nature of the attachment is the first step towards email safety. Any executable type attachment has the potential to be infected. This covers a wide range of extensions. Complicating matters is that, by default, Windows suppresses file extensions. Make sure you have file extension viewing enabled.

      {i]Hint: If you aren't sure what file extensions are, sign up for the free Windows Basics online course.

Ø  Rule 2: Intent

   An executable type attachment should not be opened unless it was specifically requested or expected.

Ø  Rule 3: Necessity

  This is the simplest rule to follow, but one that many people ignore. If you do not need the attachment, don't open it. Delete the email instead

Ø  Rule 4: Secure your client

   To date, many email worms and viruses have taken advantage of security vulnerabilities found in Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express. However, any mail client that supports HTML and scripting should be considered at risk. For instructions on securing your particular mail client, choose from the list below:

  Outlook/Outlook Express
Eudora
Netscape Mail
Pegasus

Ø  Rule 5: Patch your system

 Always update your security patches …