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All Just about Computer VirusInternet Scams 101 -- Assaultive You Through Your E-mail
by:
Janette Blackwell
The Computer network is filled with scams, and eventually they wind up in your e-mail box. The ingenuity of these folk is astonishing. Their goal is normally to get you to click on an e-mail attachment, so they can infect your computer with a virus, a trailing cookie, and/or a trojan horse.
• COMPUTER VIRUSES strike fear into all our hearts. Once
a particularly vicious virus comes out, announcements are ready-made on television and in newspapers. For a good discussion of computer viruses, go to http://computer.howstuffworks.com/virus.htm.
• A COOKIE can be absolutely aboveboard and even as helpful. For example, once
you visit Amazon.com, you get a cookie which enables their computer to recognize you once
you return and to remember the sort of thing you’re interested in. Trailing COOKIES, on the another hand, record the places you go online and what links you click on, telling advertisers what type of ads should be aimed at you. It’s true, they won’t transmit a virus, but who wants an Computer network sleuthhound baying on their trail? Nice anti-spyware wish move out trailing cookies.
• A TROJAN HORSE pretends to be thing
it is not, such as an e-mail from a friend or thing
you’ve ordered. The text of the e-mail may say, “Here is the information you wanted.” Or, “Keep this as a private secret between you and me.” Or, “You’ve just won our grand prize!” Thing
to do you click on that attachment. Once you do, the trojan horse takes over your computer. It can do any malicious thing it wants, from erasing files to ever-changing your desktop. It then propagates by causing itself to another folk in your address book.
A good friend just had his Computer network address list stolen, and I’ve been acquiring messages purportedly
from him ever since. They all want me to click on an attachment to the e-mail. I e-mailed asking him if he’d sent that message. He had not.
Even as if you’re smart enough not to click on a trojan horse attachment yourself, one of the friends on your address list may do so, your address wish then be stolen, and off you go into the underworld.
Once scammers get your e-mail address, they may use it to send malicious e-mails to thousands of folk in your name. I normally learn this once
I get “I’m out of the office” automatic respondent messages from folk I ne'er
detected
of. It’s frustrating, but I cognize it isn’t my fault.
• Anti-scam rule 1: Ne'er
click on an attachment from a good friend unless you are positive the friend sent it. It takes only a minute to click on “Reply” and ask the friend, “Did you actually send this?”
• Anti-scam rule 2: Ne'er
double-click on an e-mail attachment that contains an executable, such as an EXE, COM or VBS suffix. Once you click on it, an feasible can do any sort of damage it wants. (Enough folk now cognize this to do the swindler say, “This attachment is virus-free.” If you believe that, I’ve got a good bridge I’d like to sell you.)
• Anti-scam rule 3: Your computer CANNOT be infected by an e-mail attachment unless you click on the attachment. If you just delete the suspicious message without clicking on a link or the attachment, you’re okay.
REAL Chutzpa
It’s so awful it’s funny, but after the scammers have used your purloined address to scam thousands, they have one much scam up their sleeves. This is the message they sent me:
“Your e-mail account was used to send a immense figure of spam during this week. Obviously, your computer was compromised and now contains a trojan proxy server. Please follow the manual in the attached text file in order to support your computer safe.
Sincerely yours,
The foodandfiction.com team.”
My 1st thought was, “How nice. These folk are sympathetic to my problem and want to help me.” And then I thought, “Wait a minute! This message is purportedly
from the foodandfiction.com team. Food and Fiction, http://foodandfiction.com, is me, myself, and I, and I ne'er
sent that message.” Of course, if my e-mail address had been, say, AOL, the message would-be have been signed, “the AOL.com team.” I mightiness have thought the dear peoples at AOL were trying to help me, and I’d have clicked on that attachment. Which was of course from the scammer, not AOL, and would-be have infected me.
• Anti-scam rule 4: Having your address purloined makes NOT infect you with a virus or trojan horse. If you don’t open suspicious attachments, you are all right -- although you may want to warn your friends that they’ll be acquiring attachments pretence to be from you, which attachments wish infect them if they open them.
Coming next: an article on hijackings and spyware.
Just about the author:
Find the better recipe, food gift, and healthy diet sites on Janette Blackwell’s Delicious Food Directory, http://delightfulfood.com/main.htmlOr enjoy her country cookery at Food and Fiction, http://foodandfiction.com/Entrance.html
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