There are always fears surrounding email viruses and rightly so in many
cases. However, it is very unusual for the body of an email message only to
appear as an attachment. What is in the body of the message in which case?
To dispel some myths: you cannot get a virus from a plain text file (i.e.
.txt file); a virus is an executable program which will run when an
attachment is opened. You should be particularly careful of files which have
the extension .exe or .vbs (the latter is VB Script and has been the source
of some particular nasties such as the I Love You virus). Most mail packages
will have their own scanning software - hotmail which I'm using at the
moment uses McAffee. So scan your attachments first.
But, if in doubt, do not open ANY unsolicited emails or attachments. Delete
them.
Regards,
Don Mowbray
Oracle Corporation UK
>From: Angus Graham <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: [log in to unmask]
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Attachments & viruses
>Date: Tue, 31 Oct 2000 21:24:27 +0400
>
>Vivario has recently and inadvertently sent us a virus. She is doubtless
>pink with embarrassment, and I am sure we can all forgive her,
>especially since someone was alert enough to warn us all within a few
>minutes of her message being sent. We are all at risk, and this could
>happen to any of us.
>
>However. Some mail systems will send e-mails *only* as 'attachments' --
>v. the recent 'Testing' e-mail from Dave Forth and its response. Some
>list-members use this type of e-mail, where the message is not
>immediately plain text and we have to open it to see what the message
>is. The box I see at the bottom tells me Mr Forth's message is 'plain
>text'. Does this mean I can cheerily open the message knowing that I am
>not at risk?
>
>I had thought to send this message to George Ferzoco only, but I think
>that we will surely all find ourselves in the same position and many of
>us would welcome chapter and verse, should it be available, and it may
>be that we have someone out there Who Knows The Answer? Let us not send
>attachments. Where our messages may appear in need of opening, is the
>'plain-text' box enough to tell the rest of us we are safe?
>
>I apologise that this expression of concern is not medieval, and is
>religious only in its quest for a canonical answer (unless you are an
>AppleMac user, in which case it's all icons anyway).
>
>Angus Graham, Oman
>
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