As a general rule, acting on forwarded email warnings is not one of the best ways to protect yourself from viruses — and not just because the majority of such warnings are hoaxes. In a sense, all virus warnings are misleading because they lend the false impression that as long we watch out for specific file attachments, we'll be safe. Not so!
How to tell the hoax from the real thing, from the U.S. Dept. of Energy's Computer Incident Advisory Capability.
This one is complicated. The name refers to a bogus virus alert, but also to a known 'Trojan horse' program. Details from the CIAC Virus Hoaxes page.
It's a hoax. Sophos.com calls it "a waste of time and bandwidth."
Forwarded email warns of "the most destructive ever" computer virus circulating as an attachment to messages entitled "Black in the White House."
An AOL hoax, supposedly a downloadable file containing a virus that will erase your hard drive and/or steal screen names and passwords. Info from Symantec.
Originally offered in 1996 as a download from Budweiser.com, the Bud Frogs Screen Saver was an instant hit; too big a hit for some people's tastes, evidently, because in 1997 pranksters launched an urgent alert claiming the program contains a virus.
Messages warning of a dangerous file attachment called "California IBM" or "Wobbler" are hoaxes, according to About's Antivirus Guide.
It's a 1998 hoax updated for a new audience. Check here for the facts.
Antivirus experts say there are several variants of this hoax, all of which attempt to discredit the safety of popular games.
Rob Rosenberger tells the story of how a harmless Halloween animation came to be known as a "dangerous" Trojan horse program.
Solid info from the venerable 'Good Times Virus Hoax FAQ.'
A hoax, says Symantec's virus lab.
From ZDNN: computer virus researcher Russ Cooper says the threat posed by the possibility of "hostile code" in Web pages is more theoretical than real.
Debunked by About's Antivirus Guide Mary Landesman.
Hoax virus alert circulating just prior to the opening of of the 2006 Winter Olympics warns of a computer virus that "opens an Olympic torch which 'burns' the hard disc." (Variant of "A Virtual Card for You" hoax.)
From IBM: how an interactive novel on the Web came to be mistakenly known as a computer virus.
That's the title of a supposed new virus-bearing email according to a forwarded email alert. No way, say antivirus labs. The warning is a hoax.
(Also known as the "teddy bear virus.") Following on the coat tails of the SULFNBK.EXE hoax, this warning again urges users to delete a perfectly legitimate file.
Email warnings about a supposed virus-bearing PowerPoint presentation called "Life is beautiful.pps" are false.
True: An Internet virus / worm is being propagated in emails containing the header 'Mail Server Report'
Message beginning "Do not open any message with an attached file called 'Merry Christmas' regardless of who sent it" is a hoax.
This is a hoax, says computer security expert Rob Rosenberger. There is no "July 4" virus embedded in music downloaded from the Internet.
Also known simply as "Family Pictures." No real virus here, just a hoax -- as listed by Sophos.com.
NOT A HOAX: Virus alert warns that emails with the subject line 'Obama Acceptance Speech' carry a Trojan horse program that steals passwords and user IDs.
Outdated email alert warns that messages purporting to offer pictures of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden hanged actually link to a malicious computer virus.
"Simply another hoax," says IBM's Antivirus department.
About's antivirus expert Mary Landesman has ruled this one a hoax.
Hoax email alert warns of 'the worst virus ever' circulating in the form of an attachment labeled "POSTCARD."
It's a prank, straighforwardly debunked by Mary Landesman.
This phony alert about a supposedly malicious Geocities Website has been circulating for way too long.
More commonly known as "A Virtual Card for You," this alleged virus is a hoax.
Is it a hoax, a virus, or WHAT? Here are answers to frequently asked questions about the so-called "June 1 Virus."
Facts behind an old virus hoax with a brand-new name. (Update: newer versions include the header "Help poor dog...")
Also known as the "California" virus. Hoax info from Antivirus expert Mary Landesman.
According to all the major antivirus labs this supposed virus, allegedly capable of wiping out your hard drive, doesn't exist.
Hoax email alert warns of 'the worst virus ever' circulating under the header 'A Card for You' (or 'A Virtual Card for You').
Beware, there's a new virus going around called 'work.' If you receive any sort of 'work' at all, whether via email, Internet or simply handed to you by a colleague... DO NOT OPEN IT!
