Mydoom virus

[Dr_nwa]

Hello.
I have recieved 6 emails in the last three days that have been picked up by my uni email checker thingy for containing this virus. This morning i recieved another email, this time with the virus as an attachment. It actually came from one of the uni addresses which have access to all the email addresses in the university. It actually had not been picked up by the email checker thingy, so i laughed hysterically and deleted it after my virus checker told me it was bad.
I'm a biology student. the only sort of viruses i deal with are ones that make humans ill.
Is this virus really as bad as it is made out to be?
can someone explain to me what it actually does?
I have a good virus checker, so should i be worried?
If someone can explain it in plain english, with out using words of more than two syllables and hardly any computer phraseology, i will love you for ever.

[Mystical Parrot]

Is this virus really as bad as it is made out to be? its not bad for you unless the backdoor (see below) is in the code. its bad for sco and m$ tho and anyone who's email address is on your computer because you'd flood their email address with it

can someone explain to me what it actually does? apparently it contains a backdoor (something which allows the programmer to access your computer) but apart from that it floods the m$ and/or sco websites with constant requests trying to down them it also creates copies of itself and forwards them to every email address on your computer in a continual loop

I have a good virus checker, so should i be worried? no if your virus scanner is updated regually and has a "always on" protection even if you dl it it cant do anything. if you didnt dl it then you have nothing to worry about


hope that helps

[Lewiji]

Some varients of it also clog down your system by launching lots of the same process. A quick fix until you virus scan it is to set your clock past the 14th of feb.

[HiTmAN]

Surely people will have learned by now :(

No, that attachment in the email isn't from Microsoft. It isn't a cool game. It isn't porn. It isn't a file from your system administrator. It isn't a free virus checker.

This is just getting ridiculous, attachment-happy people should stopped from using a computer until they realise that people like them actually slowed down the Internet by 10% a few weeks ago by clicking on those damn attachments. Email is actually losing popularity because people feel insecure about what is in their inbox.

I'm not one to bash people less computer-literate than I am, because that isn't right, but surely with the I Love You virus, and the media attention that that generated, people would have realised by now?

</rant>

[Cjw]

Some people really need to learn not to open unknown file attachments..should be taught as defalt to all net users.

[Dr-Electro]

I had one heck of a laugh when I found out that the "gurus" downtown had let Mydoom get in and bollix the Group Wise mail server! Group Wise is supposedly immune to mydoom!

Larf-larf-larf!!!!

[mini_ninja_pir8]

NEVER OPEN A ATTACHMENT WHICH YOU DO NOT TRUST!!!!!

even i know that..and i havent had it drilled into me(unlike some other things)

yet, there are soooo many gulliable people out there...,

the internet isnt a safe place,


well..sort of

[Dr-Electro]

Originally posted by mini_ninja_pir8
NEVER OPEN A ATTACHMENT WHICH YOU DO NOT TRUST!!!!!

even i know that..and i havent had it drilled into me(unlike some other things)

yet, there are soooo many gulliable people out there...,

the internet isnt a safe place,


well..sort of

You are a very bright young person.:D *drills more stuff into head*

Hey, in case anybody never noticed before, I like bragging on kids when they do well. *drills more holes, stuffs them with knowledge*

[dead]

I haven't got any emails from mydoom. I never open attachments unless i know ( and trust) that person, so that helps avoid them. I think the only virus i've ever had was a trojan horse virus.
I think sapam emails much more annoying though. I get quite a few from a company which says i have won $500,000 in a random lottery.

I wonder.... would it be wise to claim it?
no.

[Pigabuff]

From my learn-edd experience :rolleyes:.... I will say there are many types of computer virus, some in fact can be quite harmless, but the some can be extreemly malicous!!!
and others simply fall in between. There are also many differnet ways in which they are sent/picked up, in e-mails, in e-mail attachments, in pop-up's (yes even pop-up's...t'is why I would suggest a furewall!!), floppy disk's, and CD's, but this is a less common way because of the way CD's are read.


Originally posted by mini_ninja_pir8
NEVER OPEN A ATTACHMENT WHICH YOU DO NOT TRUST!!!!!

even i know that..and i havent had it drilled into me(unlike some other things)

yet, there are soooo many gulliable people out there...,

the internet isnt a safe place,


well..sort of

That ( ^ ) is sound advice, however! But the same should be done for e-mails you do not trust, as in one's from people you don't know, or agencies you've never heard of!

and even if you've heard of them, i would adivse not opening it, unless you've sent for it!