Watch out for MyDoom

28 January 2004

BRUSSELS – Web-users should watch out for MyDoom, a new computer virus that has been dubbed the fastest online pest ever.

The virus works by via e-mail, sending copies of itself to everyone in a victim’s address book.

It has also been introduced into the Kazaa file-sharing network, which many web-surfers use to download music, software and other files.

Anti-virus experts estimated that MyDoom had already infected 100 million emails by Wednesday morning.

The virus arrives as an email that often has the subject “Test” or “Status”.

The message inside may read: “The message contains Unicode characters and has been sent as a binary attachment”. There is an e-mail attachment that usually ends in .exe, .scr, .zip, .cmd or .pif.

Computer experts say anyone receiving this message should delete it without opening any of the attachments. They should then delete it again, this time from the deleted items folder in their e-mail programme.

Finally, they should make sure their anti-virus software is up to date.

Subject: Belgian news