Very Stuborn virus

[james t kirk]

I need some help from the peanut gallery.

I seem to have a very stuborn virus that is only affecting my email.

Every day, i get about 5 or 6 emails that bounce back to me from addresses i don't even know, or are not in my address book saying that my email was rejected due to a virus, or warning me that i have a virus, etc.

I have scanned my system several times with Norton and it doesn't pick up any viruses.

Yet when the emails (that i didn't send) bonce back, Norton tells me they are infected and has taken the proper steps to eliminated them.

Only affecting my email. I can still send and receive emails, but i seem to get these bounce backs every time.

I have noticed when i exit from outlook it does a send at the instant i exit.

Any suggestions????

 

[bobistheowl]

If there are attachments, that's probably where the virus is - the returned message text is just a ploy to make you think your email is being returned to sender.

Don't click on any hyperlinks in these emails. A link that says 'click here to be removed from our mailing list' might activate a virus.

 

[kooley]

I use hotmail and am having the same problem.

 

[pico]

Blaster, Sobig, Welchia

I'm not really an expert, but I do have some experience with this recently.

The 3 worms that hit computers over the last few weeks, namely Blaster, sobig, and Welchia, were not detected by AV software because of their MO.

If you haven't heard of these, check the Norton AV site at symantec.com and read the descriptions of each one.

The easiest way is to check the registry keys (be careful when doing this) and the processes that are running on your PC.

If you find a match on one of these viruses, Norton will have a link to a free "removal tool" that you can download.

Better yet, just download all three and scan each one.

Before scanning with the removal tool, be sure to disable "system restore" (instructions can be found on the symantec site). Remember to turn it back on after you restart your PC.

I am also assuming that you're running WinXP.

Good luck, and let us know how you make out!

 

[james t kirk]

Thanks for the help.

I will go to Norton's site and try it out.

I haven't been opening any attachments, and yes, i am using Windows XP.

Damn these little bastards who write these viruses. They should all be thrown in jail for life.

 

[pico]

Don't forget

When you are finished checking for a virus, remember to run Windows Update for critical updates and to update the virus definitions on your AV software.

P.

 

[pico]

Virus Writers

This is what virus writers look like...

http://a799.g.akamai.net/3/799/388/7db5b43cce23e0/www.msnbc.com/news/2000067.jpg

18-year-old Jeffrey Lee Parson.

(Actually, he didn't write the original Blaster virus. He just modified it for continued propogation).

 

[pico]

Opening attachments...

The 3 worms that I mentioned above weren't activated from opening attachments. That's why they weren't caught by AV software.

The worms work by scanning open ports on your PC from an outside source.

MS knew about this security flaw, but did not list the patch as "critical" until the poopoo hit the fan a few weeks ago.

At least that's what my tech tells me...

 

[ycghiydvo]

A little more information....

I am a network admin and these viruses/worms are a pain. Our virus protection has caught them all (we use Inoculate it through Computer Associates) but as the administrator, I am getting hundreds of messages saying "Inoculate it has detected... blah blah blah."

And another wrinkle. If your virus protection is set-up like ours is, to alert not only the administrator, but the sender and the recipient, you will also get messages from the other side. The worms/viruses are spoofing e-mail addresses, so the name in the senders box, or address, is being spoofed and you'll get a message from the network where the supposed message originated from, and it will tell you that there is no such user, or no such address.

MS knows many of there security flaws ahead of time, but rarely act proactively to fix them. Go to PCWorld.com and read about some of it.

Good luck with you computer problems.

 

[Big Daddy]

I had a similar problem. I don't think your computer has a virus. I think it is a new way to spread the virus. Making you feel that your email has bounced and trying to entice you to read the attachment (which actually contains the virus).