North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Greg Miller" <gsmiller@cet.com>]

It seems that a rather nasty virus was recently posted to this list  as an attachment.  Like many modern computer viruses, it is  activated when the attachment is opened.  The problem (and the  solutions) come down to a convenience vs. security question.

In the past you had to actually RUN an attachment to activate the  virus, but many of the "improvements" to the Windows operating  system that improve ease of use make the system vulnerable to  certain types of attachments.  In the past certain DATA files were  merely associated with an executable file on your computer; now  there are macro, script, and information files that in many respects  act as executable files, so that "opening" what might seem to be a  data file actually runs a PROGRAM that in some instances can  carry a viral payload.  Automatic running of files is VERY  convenient, but potentially dangerous.

The question is what to do.  

Ban the person who posted the attachment?  
Temporary suspension might have some merit, but I'm not  inclined to permanently ban anyone as typically these messages  are not deliberately posted to the list.  In any event I can't monitor all  postings in real time, and much of the damage can potentially be  done before any suspension is accomplished.  As an aside,  hopefully some of the energy generated in replying to this problem  was channeled into notifying Kevin that the problem existed (I did,  but 3 days after the fact.)  

No attachments to the list?
Tom Olenio suggested this idea, and it has some merit, but  there comes that convenience factor again.  Some group members  (including one very active member) participate primarily through  email alone, so accessing a web site is either inconvenient or  unworkable for a variety of reasons.  Also, accessing the web  site takes some additional effort (which will certainly exceed some  subscribers threshold) and will result in less replies to a "what's  eating my plant?" type question.  

**I am however, inclined to give this one a try after a suitable  period for those OPPOSED to voice their case for leaving as is.**

Subscriber security.
Hmmm.  The world has changed in many ways, and in many  places you can't leave your house or car unlocked, or set down  your wallet and expect it to be there when you come back.  The  internet is one of those places, but it's even worse than the real  world because people you know and trust can be duped into  causing you harm without ever implicating the original perpetrator.  

I would advise everyone to check out the many resources on the  internet about viruses and security.  Here's a brief summary of  what many of those sites will say.  (IF you have questions, search  those sites for more info!)

1.  Beware of any email attachments that you are not expecting.   Typically viruses will contain generic message like "here's that info  you wanted" as opposed to "here a photo of what's been chewing  the terminal leaves of my Granny Smith apple" along with other  descriptive info.  On the flip side when you are sending an  attachment, refer to its presence in the body of your message, and  do something to "personalize" the message specifically for the  recipient.

2.  Beware of convenience settings in your operating system and  email programs.  This is especially true if you use the mainstream  programs like MS Outlook, which virus writers will sometimes  specifically target because of its broad user base.  I have the "Hide  file extensions for known file types" unchecked in Windows  Explorer, and I NEVER enable macros or automatically open  attachments even from someone I trust, because there isn't a need  for me to do that.  Less convenient, way safer.  I also use an email  program other than MS Outlook--Pegasus email in my case (it's still  free!) or Eudora are two I would recommend.

3.  Be security conscious.  A virus program that runs in the  background is a good start (but only as good as the last update!)  and I would also recommend a firewall program like ZoneAlarm  (www.zonelabs.com) which monitors OUTGOING traffic (good for  Trojan horse programs).  And way down on the convenience  scale, and one that is good for computer crashes (where I learned  the lesson) as well as data distruction by viruses, is regular  computer back ups--especially for data!

Greg Miller