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Thread: BE careful, computer virus warning.

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    Veteran Member Phedre's Avatar
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    Exclamation BE careful, computer virus warning.

    My computer tech just called me to say there was a virus released today with something like "the wife" in the subject line. I just wanted to warn everyone because I noticed we had some people that seemed like trolls here the past few days. DON'T open any attachments if you don't know who they came from.
    Phedre
    ~ my very own pole dancer!

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    God/dess doc-catfish's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    This virus or "worm" goes by the name Kama Sutra, Blackworm, or Nyxem. It is meant to destroy certain types of files like Microsoft Word and Excel.

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/41336
    http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/02/03/wormstrike/

    It was scheduled to "explode" today, but it seems thusfar to have done little damage.
    Former SCJ now in rehab.

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    God/dess Deogol's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    I wonder if it is not spreading so much because more and more organizations are doing outbound spam/virus filtering (as well as the usual inbound.)

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    Featured Member Meea's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    I could never understand the purpose of viruses. Are they developped solely for shits and giggles? what do the creators have to gain if my Word or Excel stops working?

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    God/dess Mastridonicus's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    The same question gets asked of hackers.

    The point is that there is a lot to be upset about, inflated software costs, lack of support, fluxuating economy in the technical support field etc etc etc.

    How many people do you know who are good with computers? How many of them have good jobs?

    The fact is, virus' are written to show flaws in software and/or the user, thusly giving the writer a sense of superiority. This is the way it is, and in some ways, will always be. They keeps some people employed, they cost others their jobs, all so the writer can say 'I did it'

    The point is, no matter what, someone is out there wanting to ruin your day, there may be no point, but it's still being done. It is truly sad, but I cannot complain.

    As for hackers, there are good and there are bad. The point to their existence is to prove that the software and/or hardware was flawed. What they do with that knowledge makes them good or bad.

    Both influences technology and its growth... so we cannot really say we're unthankful.

    This virus is nothing to seriously be warned about, anyone with spam filtering will get this sent right to their junk/trash folder, and upon my own further research I notice it uses a virus code very similar to an old one and current versions of trendmicro, symantec, normon, and ClamAV are capable of spotting it, however it's not sure what it is. If you use Thunderbird for your email with junk mail enabled, I tested this to auto divert.

    DO NOT take this as protection for yourself, if you have a windows pc please go to http://housecall.trendmicro.com and follow the prompts. Make sure you're ok.

    If you have antivirus software update it.

    Mast!
    People are not ruled by their memories.

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    God/dess Deogol's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    It is interesting to see how the youngsters define hackers these days. In my days, hacking meant cutting bloat out of software and still having it do the same thing. It was a show of skill and cunning to achieve this - and very valuable when machines only had 256KB of memory. (I personally starting programming on a machine with only 5KB of memory - most cell phones have more memory these days!)

    Hacking also refered to breaking apart something (maybe they should have been called choppers!) and then reassembling it into a cool thing.

    Then came along the troublesome code. The kind that would show up in BBS' (does anyone remember what these were) tucked away in zip files. People would say "Oh my someone really elegant managed to put this trouble in - he must have been a hacker!" It was the only word to describe an elite programmer.

    The real word and those of us who "were" hackers (but can't be called that because the word has whole new meaning) that should have been used is "cracker." But I suppose that would have been considered racist.

    Worms first came around I believe due to a game called worm wars. One would basically write programs that would crawl around in memory trying to find and destroy someone else's worm program. Of course tight code would be nice because then your worm would be less likely to get sqwashed by another raging worm. If you can picture blocks with little worms copying themselves around memory trying to destroy every one elses worms you can see the coolness of this.

    In fact, I sometimes wonder if the matrix screen was derived from the worm wars screen because basically all it did was dump memory in hexidecimal to the screen. You looked for patterns of hexidecimal that represented your program and you could "see" your program "moving" around in memory.

    Of course some idiot must have thought it would be cool to release a worm into the wild and see what happens.

    These days, a lot of viruses carry a payload of a different sort. The old days of troubled youths reaching out to slap ya are being replaced by sophisticated mafias and cabals who want to make your computer a sender of spam mail, a break point into other people's computers, a safehouse for child porn, a way point to shake law enforcement off your trail as they go from computer to computer to computer, and finally if they can hold your data hostage and blackmail you - the illicit benefits become obvious for viruses.

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    God/dess Mastridonicus's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    Deogel,

    Spitfire BBS / PC Board 12 / Ripterm BBS runner here!

    you're right, but cutting bloat from software was originally called Normalization, hacking was a slang term for it, until later when normalization became part of database driven application steps. I may be wrong but I am almost 100% that's what is.

    The title worm was derived from a science fiction story called "The Shockwave Rider" <had to look that up can't believe I forgot the name> in 1975 which wrote of a government that controls it's people by a powerful computer network. An activist infiltrated this network to destroy it using a program called 'The Tapeworm', which forced the government to tear down it's network. Many modern day movies and novels where inspired by this story. But it's funny that worm took on a negative name since its origin was based in freedom of oppression

    The first WORM was created by a guy in 1971 which popped up a msg sayng "I'm the creeper! Catch me if you can" it didn't reproduce itself.

    Xerox's system worms failed in 1988 showing how worms could be used for damage, this was unintentional. Enter Robert Morris.

    The most notible WORM came in 1988 by a guy name Morris <I'm researching for accuracy here> who wrote the worm that at that time single handedly crashed the Internet <what it was> and was so well done that the MIT and Berkley system researchers spent days analyzing the code for media attention that rivaled the persidential elections at that time. The problem ended up being that people had nothing to see, so it became more of a battle against the worm. The first "Vaccine".

    Then in 1989 CERT published it's first advisory against a worm named WANK, this used bugs and exploits in software to propogate and became the first malicious worm.

    Now I did need help remembering the facts, and I may be young, but I know my junk

    <3 Deogel
    People are not ruled by their memories.

  8. #8
    God/dess Deogol's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    Ah good times good times.

    I know the normalization that you are speaking about. This is a simplication of the language used - this is a different thing than hacking. Hacking is taking a kludge of a program and making it more elegant without simplifying it's underlaying syntax. Often, having better syntax allows one to hack more instructions out of the kludge.

    The normalization you speak of might be C compiled into assembler. This is one syntax into another syntax of a more baser grammar. And of course, one can then take assembler down into machine code. And of course, via hardware you can even normalize that.

    What I am speaking about is doing the same thing in five lines of code that another had done in perhaps ten lines of code.

    Database normalization is something else all together. This is a pretty good definition of database normalization:

    And yes - you do know your junk

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    God/dess Silverback's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    Why would anyone open a file called "the wife" ?
    "He will come in one of the pre-chosen forms. During the rectification of the Vuldrini, the traveler came as a large and moving Torg! Then, during the third reconciliation of the last of the McKetrick supplicants, they chose a new form for him: that of a giant Slor! Many Shuvs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Slor that day, I can tell you!"

  10. #10
    God/dess Deogol's Avatar
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    Default Re: BE careful, computer virus warning.

    Funny how this showed up on slashdot.

    A little bit of history from Bill Gates saying "most of you steal your software."

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