Beware Of The Code Red Virus!

Mark

Moderator / Sponsor
I received an e-mail from a customer I know pretty good today, or so I thought?

It was actually from his virus infected computer.

Fortunately I did not open the attachment ( might not have effected a Mac but definitely would effect a PC.

Subject was: "Hi! How are you?"

The copy read: "I send you this file in order to have your advice
see you later. Thanks


The attached file was titled: "DOMINGOUES#3.doc.bat

I called him imediately and told him his computer had the virus he thought I was crazy but to his surprise he found the computer he had shut down this morning, on and on the internet and sending e-mails to everyone in his addressbook.

BE CAREFUL WHEN OPENING ATTACHMENTS!

Check out the story below, ask Beth for help if you suspect you might have been infected.

July 30, 2001
Clock Ticking on Code Red Virus
By: Pamela Hess, United Press International
Total posts: 8


WASHINGTON, Jul 30, 2001 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Computer security specialists said the Code Red computer worm presents a "very real and present threat to the Internet" and warn there were only a few hours left to act before the virus reinfects computers.

Code Red, which could cause widespread Internet outages, is likely to start spreading again at 8 p.m. EDT Tuesday and has mutated so that it may be even more dangerous than before.

An alert from the federal government, Microsoft, the Carnegie Mellon University's Computer Emergency Response Team and others says the virus has the potential to disrupt business and personal use of the Internet for applications such as electronic commerce, e-mail and entertainment.

Some researchers believe Code Red may have been created by Chinese hackers. One version defaces Web pages while another remains hidden, but the real danger comes from the amount of automated traffic the virus will generate on the Internet.

"The worm scans the Internet, identifies vulnerable systems, and infects these systems by installing itself. Each newly installed worm joins all the others, causing the rate of scanning to grow rapidly. This uncontrolled growth in scanning directly decreases the speed of the Internet and can cause sporadic but widespread outages among all types of systems," states the alert.

Code Red began replicating on July 19 and infected 250,000 systems in just nine hours. The worm was set to launch a coordinated, automated attack on the White House Web server on July 20, but network administrators changed the White House's Internet Protocol address and foiled the operation.

The Pentagon shut down public access to most of its Web sites for nearly five days last week while it protected its system from the worm. Military computers in the U.S. military's European Command were hit especially hard by the bug, a military official told United Press International.

Only users of Microsoft Windows NT or Windows 2000 who also use the IIS Web server are vulnerable to the worm.

Getting rid of the worm, if it is already installed, is simple: reboot the computer. Microsoft has also issued a patch, like a software "Band Aid," to correct the problem and prevent reinfection.

The alert was issued by Microsoft; The National Infrastructure Protection Center; Federal Computer Incident Response Center; Information Technology Association of America; CERT Coordination Center; SANS Institute; Internet Security Systems and Internet Security Alliance.
 

Beth

New Member
If you have your antivirus software up to date you should be in good shape. This is one time I am glad we switched from McAfee to Norton. Norton scans the email as it comes in and alerts you to viruses. In may cases, it renders them harmless.

I got lo less than 6 viruses one day last week, and 4 of them were Code Red. I've been getting it off and on for weeks, and Norton gets it every time.

Portection is the key. If you do get infected, let me know and I'll help you with restoring your system as best I can.

Now is a good time to say.....BACK UP YOU DATA....

Have a virus free day!!
:) :) :)
Beth
:cool:
 

Dan S

New Member
Beth i have Norton as well ....how do i turn it on to scan the mail ... or does it do it b/c i have it......
 

Beth

New Member
Open Norton Antivirus.
Click Email Status.
If there is a GREEN CHECK and your email address is listed, with a check next to it, your account is protected.
If there is a RED X and your email address is listed your account is not protedced, and you need to HIGHLIGHT the email address and double click.
If you have NO email addresses listed, you are not set up and you need to click the blue link below which says More Details.

Let me know how it goes:)
Beth
 

Aplus

New Member
I can vouch for InoculateIT from Computer Associates. They update their signature files about every two weeks. This means your protection stays very up-to-date.

This is the important thing here: Make sure you run virus s/w, regardless of brand, and keep the signature files updated, no less frequently then monthly.

If anybody has questions/concerns, just ask.
 

Beth

New Member
Yes. If you follow the direction in my prior post it will stay on for you. As Tony said, don't forget to update the signature files, and get the latest virus updates too.

Beth
 

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