Virus Alert: Magistrad Worm

---------------------- Forwarded by Vince J Kaminski/HOU/ECT on 05/07/2001
03:24 PM ---------------------------

Rick Russell <rickr@is.rice.edu< (by way of Suzana Gamez-Vazquez <ramos on
05/07/2001 02:26:23 PM
To: (Recipient list suppressed)
cc:
Subject: Virus Alert: Magistrad Worm

The Magistrad Worm

Systems affected: PCs with Windows 95/98/ME, Windows NT/2000 with poor
security

Method of propagation: E-mail attachment; when opened it attaches
itself to Windows executable files and sends itself to e-mail recipients.
It can grab e-mail recipient addresses from Outlook, Outlook Express,
Netscape and/or Microsoft Internet Mail and News.

Risk to the Rice campus: High. It spreads quickly, and it can damage
or destroy files and damage the system BIOS. It does not attack document
files specifically.

Hi again, it's Rick Russell your local virus guy. Two e-mail messages to
ALLDEPTS this morning contained this vicious virus. The virus affects PC
systems with Windows 9X/NT/2000, not Macs or UNIX systems.

For all the details, visit:

http://www.rice.edu/Computer/Computing/Virus/magistr.htm

This virus does not execute unless you open the attached files. So, if you
didn't open the attachments, you're fine. If you did and you're using a PC
system with some version of Windows, please contact IT staff for help
immediately. Contact information is included on the above web page.

Please do NOT open attachments without confirming their validity.
Confirmation might include a second e-mail with an exact description of
the attachment contents (including file names and sizes), a telephone
call, or a face-to-face meeting. NEVER open attachments with EXE in the
filename.

Please do not distribute this e-mail outside the Rice community, or
forward it after June 15, 2001.

Yours truly,

** Rick Russell, IT Consulting Specialist
** rickr@rice.edu, Mudd 106D, 713-348-5267