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'Postcard' or 'Postcard from Hallmark' Virus Hoax

By , About.com Guide

Netlore Archive: Hoax alert warns of 'the worst virus ever' circulating in the form of an attachment labeled 'POSTCARD' or 'POSTCARD FROM HALLMARK.'

Description: Virus hoax
Circulating since: Feb. 2008 (this version)
Status: False, though real e-card viruses do exist (see details below)

NOTE: Some versions of this hoax claim the information was "verified" on Snopes.com. This is NOT true. What has been verified on Snopes.com is a different e-card virus threat with a similar name.

DO beware of phony "Hallmark" (or other) e-card notices — they may indeed carry a real virus.

DON'T be confused by the false descriptions in the messages quoted below.

Analysis follows.


Example #1:
Email text contributed by Caroline O., June 13, 2008:

Subject: VERY IMPORTANT - BIG VIRUS COMING!!! PLEASE READ & FORWARD !!!

http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/postcard.asp

Hi All, I checked Snopes (URL above:), and it is for real!!

Get this E-mail message sent around to your contacts ASAP.

PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CONTACTS!

You should be alert during the next few days. Do not open any message with an attachment entitled 'POSTCARD FROM HALLMARK,' regardless of who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens A POSTCARD IMAGE, which 'burns' the whole hard disc C of your computer. This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called' POSTCARD,' even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately.

This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

COPY THIS E-MAIL, AND SEND IT TO YOUR FRIENDS. REMEMBER: IF YOU SEND IT TO THEM, YOU WILL BENEFIT ALL OF US

Snopes lists all the names it could come in.


Example #2:
Email text contributed by Jenifer B., Feb. 9, 2008:

PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CONTACTS!

You should be alert during the next few days. Do not open any message with an attachment entitled "POSTCARD," regardless of who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens A POSTCARD IMAGE, which 'burns' the whole hard disc C of your computer. This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts.

If you receive a mail called" POSTCARD," even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately.

This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Drive.


Analysis: With so many real viruses in circulation with names almost identical to the bogus threats you may read about in hoax messages like the ones above, it's crucial to know how to distinguish between real virus threats and bogus ones.

Here are a few points to keep in mind:

1. It's true that there are real viruses, trojans, and other malicious programs distributed via fake e-card notices.

These malware-containing emails may arrive under any of dozens of possible headers, for example:

• You've received a Hallmark E-Card!
• You've received a postcard from a family member!
• Colleague sent you a postcard from egreetings.com!
• Birthday e-card

These do resemble legitimate notices from e-card providers. This means every user needs to be very careful when dealing with such emails, no matter what the apparent source. Before clicking on any links or attachments in the body of such a message, check to see if you can verify that it came from a legitimate source — which isn't always easy. If you can't verify, don't click!

Don't click on links or attachments in e-card notices that arrive anonymously, or from senders whose names you don't recognize.

Don't click on attachments or links that seem suspicious in any other way.

2. Generally speaking, forwarded virus warnings such as the 'POSTCARD' alerts above cannot be trusted to provide accurate details.

Read carefully! Try not to confuse hoax warnings with the real thing. Bogus virus alerts often contain links to websites which, at first glance, may seem to confirm the authenticity of the message, but which in fact discuss a completely different matter.

The very message we're discussing is a case in point. Despite the fact that there are real e-card viruses out there, and some of them may even employ the words "Hallmark" and "postcard," the warnings above are, in fact, hoaxes. They're simply the latest of many, many variants of a false alert that began circulating years ago (compare the verbiage and you'll see what I mean).

So don't depend on this type of viral alert for protection, and avoid forwarding such messages to other people unless you can confirm with some certainty that the threat they describe is real.

3. Protecting yourself from real virus and trojan threats entails a few simple but critical measures. Follow them religiously:

  1. Always be very careful concerning which attachments you open and which files you download. If you can't be reasonably sure they are safe, don't open or download them.

  2. Maintain up-to-date antivirus software on your computer, configure it to detect trojan horses and other malware automatically, and scan for viruses and other threats regularly.

  3. Always be careful concerning which links you choose to click, especially in messages from anonymous or unfamiliar sources. Clicking on these links can instantly download malicious software onto your computer. Again, if you can't be reasonably sure a link is safe, don't click on it.

See also: "Olympic Torch" Virus Warning, another version of this hoax.


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Sources and further reading:

Greetings! Someone Has Sent You an E-Card Virus
Computerworld, 16 August 2007

Hoax Encyclopedia: A Virtual Card for You
"Hoaxes are a waste of both time and money. Please don't forward them on to others."

Computer Virus Hoaxes
Index and resources from About.com


Last updated: 11/20/12


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