I have now received something like twelve e-mails which had attachments bearing the W32.Sircam.Worm@mm virus. The way this sucker works is that, if your system becomes infected, it picks a random file from your hard disk and e-mails an infected version of it to everyone in your address book. It comes in a message that says something innocuous like, "I send you this file in order to have your advice," or the Spanish equivalent. Since it comes from you, your friends may think it's okay to open but if they do, their system becomes infected with it and the plague continues to spread. In the meantime, the worm is doing assorted other nasty things to your system. So far, it only seems to be infecting Windows systems that are not running Windows NT or Windows 2000…but you should be on guard anyway. You should also…
- Be suspicious of any attached file, even if it comes from someone you know well. Be especially wary if the message to which it is attached says something bland like, "Here is the file you requested" or "I hope you like this file."
- When you send someone a file, attach it to a short e-mail message of the kind that could not be generated by a stranger who writes virus programs. In other words, say something personal in your text so that the recipient will know that you intentionally sent the e-mail.
- Spring for a good virus checking program. I use McAfee VirusScan, which seems to do the trick. It's made for folks who have permanent on-line connections via networks or cable modems, and it will access the McAfee site once a day to update itself, if necessary.