[1478] in WWW Security List Archive
Re: hoax raises head again...
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (William Ender)
Wed Feb 14 13:21:02 1996
Date: Wed, 14 Feb 96 06:26:39 MST
To: Louis Numkin <LMN@nrc.gov>
From: William Ender <ender@weenie.sps.mot.com>
Cc: www-security@ns2.rutgers.edu
Errors-To: owner-www-security@ns2.rutgers.edu
At 01:58 PM 2/13/96 -0500, Louis Numkin wrote:
| I've received three inquiries from employees within the past month to add to
| my year-and-a-half old collection of "Good Times" virus warnings. Have
| any of you ever found anything to be "REAL" regarding this old hoax?
| Has anyone actually been bitten by it or gotten a copy of it for diagnosis?
| Please respond so I can try to lay this latest fear to rest. Thanks in
| advance...
PLEASE, PLEASE people ... *DO NOT* start this damn thing *again*! There
*never was* a "virus" called "Good Times" -- the whole thing was a hoax, and
it looks like it's getting another round of undeserved attention. The
so-called virus was really just a bogus E-mail "alert" that spammed the Net
and managed to get itself forwarded around by everyone and his/her
brother/sister to the point that people actually believed it was a real thing.
Also, anyone with a *lick* of good sense knows that there's no way in hell
that an ASCII file typed to the screen on your machine -- even a PC with the
ANSI.SYS driver loaded -- can trash your hard disk. This is TOTAL B.S!
There're lots of "cute"/diabolical things you *can* do with ASCII/ANSI
escape sequences, but *none* of them can do any serious damage to a computer
-- even though they may make such things *appear* to happen.
If you have a Web browser, please point yourself to the URL below -- the
"Good Times Virus Hoax FAQ."
http://www.tcp.co.uk/tcp/good-times/index.html
> Good Times Virus Hoax: the FAQ!
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> The Good Times email virus is a hoax! If anyone tries to spread the
> hoax, please show them the FAQ.
>
> [o] Main FAQ Table of contents
> [o] There is also a Mini FAQ available
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> G o o d T i m e s V i r u s H o a x
> --------
> M a i n FAQ
>
> by Les Jones
> macfaq@aol.com
> lesjones@usit.net
>
> October 12, 1995
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> October 12 Update
>
> The Good Times virus hoax is popping up again. I've received reports
> that the Infinite Loop version of the hoax has hit the U.S. Census
> Bureau and U.S. Department of Agriculture. People seeking
> information have been posting to the virus and security newsgroups
> on Usenet.
>
> The Good Times hoax shows no signs of going away. This FAQ seems to
> be the best antidote to outbreaks. I've updated the FAQ with new
> dates and updated URLs. I plan to post it to Usenet on a quarterly
> basis to keep it in circulation.
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Table of Contents
>
> * Is the Good Times email virus a hoax?
> * Why should I believe the FAQ instead of the hoax?
> * I'm new to the Internet. What is the Good Times virus hoax?
> * What is the effect of the hoax?
> * What was the CIAC bulletin?
> * What's the first version of the warning (FYI)?
> * What did the first major warning (Happy Chanukah) say?
> * What's the other major warning (ASCII)?
> * What's the popular variation on ASCII (FCC or Infinite Loop)?
> * Exactly when did the hoax start?
> * Who started the hoax?
> * Is an email virus possible?
> * How can I protect myself from viruses in general?
> * Where can I find anti-viral information on the Internet?
> * Was the hoax a sort of virus itself?
> * What's the best way to control a thought virus?
> * What are some other hoaxes and urban legends on the Internet?
> * Online References
> * The Author
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Converted into HTML by Simon Burr (simes@tcp.co.uk)
