another virus warning

[stanleyann]

got an email earlier....maybe jackie could shed some light on this one for us and let us know if its genuine or not.......

WORST VIRUS EVER ---CNN ANNOUNCED
>
> PLEASE SEND THIS TO EVERYONE ON YOUR CONTACT LIST!!
>
>
> A new virus has just been discovered that has been classified by
> Microsoft as the
> most destructive ever. This virus was discovered yesterday afternoon by
> McAfee and
> no vaccine has yet been developed. This virus simply destroys Sector Zero
> from the
> hard disk, where vital information for its functioning are stored.
>
> This virus acts in the following manner:
> It sends itself automatically to all contacts on your list with the
> title: "A Card for You".
>
> As soon as the supposed virtual card is opened the computer freezes so
> that the user has to reboot. When the ctrl+alt+del keys or the reset
> button are
> pressed, the virus destroys Sector Zero, thus permanently destroying the
> hard disk. Yesterday in just a few hours this virus caused panic in New
> York, according
> to news broadcast by CNN.
>
> This alert was received by an employee of Microsoft itself.
> So don't open any mails with subject: "A Virtual Card for You." As soon
> as you get
> the mail, delete it!! Even if you know the sender !!!
>
>
> Please pass this mail to all of your friends.
>
> Forward this to everyone in your address book. I'm sure most people,
> like myself,
> would rather receive this notice 25 times than not at All

stanleyann
>
>
>
>

 

[Seanny]

Hi StanleyAnn,


It's a hoax! Jackie posted about it when it came up about a month ago, here's a link, a think her post is about 3rd or 4th down:
http://www.thenailgeek.com/showthread.php?t=11346&highlight=cnn

The easiest way to check any email you receive telling you some horror story about the latest virus and how it will fry not only your pc, but any other electrical item within 5m of the pc when the email is opened (!) is by putting the title of the email in your search engine, eg., 'CNN Worst virus ever Hoax', or go to sites like Symantec and look at their hoax links - then once it is confirmed, delete it and don't give it another thought.

Here's just one link to have a read of about the CNN hoax virus:

http://www.hoax-slayer.com/virtual-card-virus-hoax.html

As Jackie mentioned, most of these 'hoax' viruses are harmless, but they cause a mass panic amongst people who aren't aware they're hoaxes and everybody's mail boxes gets filled with 'warnings'. So it's always best to check whether or not it's a hoax before informing everybody you know about it.

So, delete the email you've received and don't give it another thought!