IJMC - If You Use Word or Outlook, Read This

I hate to have to do this, clean up after Micro$oft's mess, but YAWMVIOTL. 
Yet Another Word Macro Virus Is On The Loose. If you use Microsoft Word 
or Microsoft Outlook (especially if you use both!) then go straight to 
TrendMicro's HouseCall page at http://housecall.antivirus.com/ or 
immediately update your personal anti-virus software. Microsoft's poor 
security has allowed a particularly insidious virus out that *does* 
transmit itself *on its own* through your Outlook email and Word 
documents. It's a beautiful day for me, I still use Lotus (hi Joe!). For 
the rest of you, go clean your hard drives, and bug your IT or IS or MIS, 
or whatever you call your geeks at work. And then, bug the geek directors 
to either buy Lotus or *lock down their Microsoft Word programs* now! Oh 
well, back to my (ok, admittedly so far...) virus free word processor. If 
you want more info...read on.                                       -dave

P.S. Probably a good idea to pass this one along to *everyone* you know.

P.P.S. That link is <A HREF="http://housecall.antivirus.com/">here</A>. 
       Use it, oh, about now...

P.P.P.S. Hey Mac users...aren't you glad you can ignore these? Linux too!




If you receive an e-mail message with the subject:

  "Important Message From ..."

Do NOT open it, and DELETE it immediately.  The message contains a
Microsoft Word file attachment, which contains a dangerous macro
"worm" (similar to a virus).  If you open this file, the macro
will send multiple copies of the file and worm to many other users,
hence causing it to spread extremely rapidly. It will also infect
your machine with a version of itself that will be present in any
new Microsoft Word documents you create.


FURTHER TECHNICAL DETAILS

  A worm replicates itself by trying to send multiple copies of
  itself to other recipients, who, in turn, execute the worm and
  do the same.

  This particular worm is in the form of a Microsoft Word macro.
  An unsuspecting user receives a message with an attached Word
  document that contains the macro. If the user opens the document
  and allows the macro to execute (either by having disabled this
  protection in MS Word, or by confirming on a dialog box), the
  macro will execute and propagate itself.

  This macro also modifies your default document template to cause
  all new documents that you write to contain the worm.  If you
  later send someone one of these documents, the recipient could
  start the propagation again, using your document as the base.

HOW TO FIND OUT MORE

  C/Net's news.com has a story on this virus/worm:

    http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,34334,00.html?st.ne.fd.gif.e

  TrendMicro's free Housecall anti-virus scan can clean Mellissa
 
    http://housecall.antivirus.com/