Subject: [Fwd: Virus Alert]

From: "L. S. Colby" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 16 Aug 1996 09:15:39 -0700

Hello:

I recently received the following email that is of interest to the
debian community and others.

L. S. Colby

Subject: Virus Alert
From: [email-masked] (Terry Colligan)
To: [email-masked],[email-masked]
Date: Fri, 16 Aug 1996 10:00:27 -0400

>Return-Path: <[email-masked]>
>X-Sender: [email-masked]
>To: [email-masked],[email-masked]
>From: [email-masked] (John Cameron)
>Subject: Virus Alert
>Date: Fri, 16 Aug 1996 09:57:26 -0400
>
>>Return-Path: <[email-masked]>
>>Date: Thu, 15 Aug 1996 23:26:49 -0400
>>From: [email-masked]
>>To: [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked], [email-masked], [email-masked],
>>        [email-masked]
>>Subject:  Virus Alert
>>
>>IMPORTANT MESSAGE!
>>
>>Subject: FW: Extremely Destructive Virus (fwd)
>>
>>There is a computer virus that is being sent across the Internet. If you
>>receive an email message with the subject line "Good  Times", DO NOT read
>>the message, DELETE it immediately.  Please read the messages below. Some
>>miscreant is sending  email under the title "Good Times" nationwide, if
>>you get anything like this, DON'T DOWN LOAD THE FILE!  It has a virus that
>>rewrites your hard drive, obliterating anything on it. Please be careful
>>and forward this mail to anyone you care about.
>>
>>             WARNING!!!!!!!  INTERNET VIRUS
>>
>>The FCC released a warning last Wednesday concerning a matter of major
>>importance to any regular user  of the Internet. Apparently a new computer
>>virus has been engineered by a user of AMERICA ON LINE that  is
>>unparalleled in its destructive capability. What makes this  virus so
>>terrifying, said the FCC, is the fact that no program needs to be
>>exchanged for a new computer to be infected. It can be spread through the
>>existing email systems of the Internet. Once a Computer is infected, one
>>of  several things can  happen. If the computer contains a hard drive,
>>that  will most likely be destroyed. If the  program is not stopped, the
>>computer's processor will be placed in an nth-complexity infinite binary
>>loop -which can severely damage the processor if left running that way too
>>long.  Luckily, there is one sure means of detecting what is now known as
>>the "Good Times" virus. It always travels to new computers the same way in
>>a text email message with the subject line reading "Good Times". Avoiding
>>infection is easy once the file has been received simply by NOT READING
>>IT! The act of loading the file into the mail server's ASCII buffer causes
>>the "Good Times" mainline program to initialize and execute. The program
>>is highly intelligent- it will  send copies of itself to everyone whose
>>email address is contained in a receive-mail file or a sent-mail file, if
>>it can find one. It will then proceed to trash the computer it is running
>>on.
>>
>> The bottom line is:  - if you receive a file with the subject line "Good
>>Times", delete it  immediately! Do not read it"  Rest assured that
>>whoever's name was on the  "From" line was surely struck by the virus.
>>Warn your friends and  local system users of this newest threat to the
>>Internet! It could save them a lot of time and money. Could you pass this
>>along to your global mailing list as well?
>>
>> George H. Bowers
>> Vice President for Information Systems University of Maryland Medical
>>  System 410-328-2579  (fax)410-328-0572  [email-masked]
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>

---

From: "Richard G. Roberto" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 16 Aug 1996 14:57:16 -0400 (EDT)

> debian community and others.

I always try to pay attention to this kind o fstuff, because
I'm paranoid.  But this is a hoax.  I recieved a warning
exactly like this from someone at Sun Microsystems!  I paid
attention, but its the same hoax as in past years.  There is
a faq on this at:

http://www.usit.net/public/lesjones/goodtimes.html

The "virus" is of the sociological nature.  People keep
recycling these silly assed mails to the "nth-complexity",
cluttering up the net and striking panic into the
uninformed.

Richard G. Roberto
[email-masked]
201-739-2886 - whippany, nj

--
*******************************************************************************
Bear Stearns is not responsible for any recommendation, solicitation, offer or
agreement or any information about any transaction, customer account or account
activity contained in this communication.
*******************************************************************************

---

From: Max Hyre <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 16 Aug 96 16:12:41 EDT

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

   Gentlefolk:

   The ``Good Times'' virus is a hoax, an urban legend.  To quote from
the CERT Coordination Center memo on the subject:

> The "Good Times" virus warnings are a hoax.  People are circulating
> the warnings without verifying the information contained therein,
> thus leading to unnecessary worry and concern.  Please do not
> circulate the "Good Times" warnings further.  Please send this
> advisory on to anyone who has mail you such an advisory.

For the full story, check one of:

    http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/notes/Notes09.shtml
    ftp://ciac.llnl.gov/pub/ciac/notes/notes09.txt

where CIAC is the ``Computer Incident Advisory Capability'', and CERT
may or may not be ``Computer Emergency Response Team'' :-).  See also

    http://www.cert.org/cert.faqintro.html

Question B9(c) for the above ``Good Times'' reference, and Question A4
for the name confusion.

			Sincerely yours,

				Max Hyre

    **>> What's all this garbage at the bottom of my message?  It's a
    	 security blanket for paranoids---ask me for details, or check
    	 out 
    	    	    http://www.efh.org/pgp/pgpwork.html

          Key fingerprint =  EFEC 0067 6803 852D  B1DB 751E 6754 14EA