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How
to Tell Virus Fact From Virus Fiction The Boy Who Cried "Wolf" The Internet is a wonderful information source and communication tool. Unfortunately, it is also probably the best medium for rumor-mongering that humankind has ever developed. Computer viruses, both real and imagined, are one of the favorite Internet rumor subjects – right up there with sick children. Unfortunately, all these rumors create a "boy who cried 'wolf'' effect." There are so many false stories our there that when a real warning comes along many people ignore it. (I've read that during the outbreak of the "Melissa" virus, the millions of warning messages that everyone was sending to everyone else caused more problems for many networks than the virus itself did.) False virus reports are often called "hoaxes." Someone at one time started each of them, perhaps as a prank, and then they've acquired lives of their own, as they are passed around and around the Internet by well-meaning people trying to warn others of danger. Some of these stories, like the "AOL4free" and Good Times" hoaxes, have been around for years, and have become classic examples of the genre. There is no need to panic about viruses. They currently cause far less computer data loss than the leading cause, which is human error. (Unless you know you never make errors, see Helpnet's How-to: Backup Basics.) But they are still a very real threat, and we each have the responsibility, as part of the community of computer users, to avoid spreading false stories while making sure that people have the accurate information they need to protect themselves. Checking Out the Stories Your first line of defense when you hear, or more likely receive an E-mail about some new threat to your computer, should be to fall back on your common sense. Mentally translate the warning to a different, non-computer context, and think of how you would evaluate it. Often, virus rumors and hoaxes are short on specifics, and long on apocalyptic language. They take the form of: "If you open this E-mail it will turn your hard drive to lime jello. There is no cure!! There is nothing you can do!! Tell all your friends!!" You should naturally be a little sceptical of warnings like this. Maybe there's a way to turn your drive to jello, but just how is this accomplished? And there is nearly always a fix available. So your next step should be to try to confirm the warning. There are a number of authoritative Web sites that can tell you whether this particular warning is real, or whether is is a known hoax. Here are a few – you can usually get the information you need from any one of them:
Spreading the Word Responsibly If you've been able to figure out that a virus warning is real and something people should be concerned about, then it makes sense to pass it on. We're all drowning in information, so keep your message short, to the point, and include the information, or a link to it, that people need to take action to protect themselves. If you've established that you've received a false warning, it is also a good idea to correct the error. Please do this concisely and respectfully – the person who passed the warning along was almost certainly acting in good faith and trying to help other users. Include information about how people can check out virus reports for themselves. Next:
Go to "Protecting Your System"
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