X-Message-Number: 6646
Date: Tue, 30 Jul 1996 16:44:40 -0400
From: Peter Vertes <>
Subject: RE: Viruses

>Message #6635
>From: 
>Date: Mon, 29 Jul 1996 17:27:20 GMT
>Subject: Viruses
>
>On July 24, 1996, the FCC issued a warning concerning a matter of major
>importance to any regular user of the Internet. Apparantly a new computer
>virus has been engineered by a user of AMERICA ON LINE that is unparalleled
>in it's destructive capability. Other more well known viruses such as
>"Stoned", "Airwolf" and "Michaelangelo" pale in comparison to the prospects
>of this newest creation by a warped mentality. What makes this virus so
>terrifying, said the FCC, is the fact that no program needs to be exchanged
>for a new computer to be infected. It can spread through the existing E-Mail
>system of The Internet.
>
>Once a computer is infected, one of several things can happen. If the
>computer contains a hard drive, that will most likely be destroyed.If the
>program is not stopped, the computer's processor will be placed in an
>infinite binary loop, which can severly damage the processor if left running
>that way too long.
>
>The virus is known as "Good Times", it always travels to new computers the
>same way,  in a text E-Mail message with the subject line reading "Good
>Times" Avoiding infection is easy once the file has been received simply by
>NOT READING IT! The act of loading the file into the mail server's ASCII
>buffer causes the "Good Times" mainline program to initialize and execute.
>
>The program is hightly intelligent, it will send copies of itself to
>everyone whose E-Mail address is contained in a receive mail file, or a sent
>mail file, if it can find one. It will then proceed to trash the computer it
>is running on. Bottom line, if you receive a file with the subject line
>"Good Times" delete it immediatly, Do not read it.
>
>Additionally, IMMORTALIST subscriber, Deborah Fleming, reports a new Trojan
>Horse virus has emerged on the Internet with the name KZIP300.ZIP, so named
>as to give the impression that this file is a new version of the PKZIP
>software used to "ZIP", (compress) files. Do not download this file under
>any circumstances!! If you install or expand this file, it will wipe your
>hard disk clean, and affect modems 14.4 and higher. This is a destructive
>virus and as yet there is no way to clean up. DO NOT DOWNLOAD ANY FILE NAMED
>PKZIP300 REGARDLESS OF THE EXTENSION.
>
>Hope this saves someone some grief.
>
>John Bull

        I hope that no one is taking this message too seriously.
Unfortunately this is a reoccuring hoax that has been resurfacing from time
to time.  It poped up at my university last semester and the system's people
posted messages to prevent panic.
        You don't need to be very computer literate to figure out that it is
impossible to create a program that will place a computer's processor in an 
infinite binary loop, which can severly damage the processor if left
running.  Infinite loops don't kill processors just lock up systems or waste
a bunch of resources.
        The Good Times virus is a hoax also.  It has been proven that it is
impossible to send a virus as an e-mail and infect others by reading the
e-mail.  Remember e-mail transfers are in ANSCII while viruses are binary.
        As for PKZIP300.  Well I haven't come across that file before, and I
seriously doubt it that the PK Corp. has put out PKZip v3.0.
        I hope that this e-mail has cleared up some confusion and calmed all
youre worries.

Cheers...

-Pete

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
		Peter Vertes	       * "Cut these eyes but I will see,
 Computer Science/Business Management  *  Kiss those lying lips for me.
 	      *  Stroke my skin and I will kneel,
http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~pvertes *  Brutalize me but I heal" - KMFDM
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


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