Off topic: computer virus problem....

[Laurynn]

Sorry, I know this isn't really relationship related, but I need some help.

 

About a week ago (I use Outlook Express), I started receiving "returned emails".....they were apparently sent by me to various people, and I guess these people no longer had those addresses (these are people I hadn't been in email contact with for well over 2 yrs) that were valid. There was an attachment on these emails I'd "supposedly" sent to them. It was a document, with a ".bat" extension on it. How embarassing......the attachment was an excerpt of an email I'd sent to an ex boyfriend over 3 years ago. Something along the lines of:

 

"I think you have many problems and I'm glad I finally realized that. You are a sorry excuse for a role model for your children, and I hope one day you get your act together. I am much better off without you in my life..bla bla bla" LOL

 

The subject line was something like "You are a disturbed individual" !!!

 

I have no idea what the h*ll happened. I fear that somehow I must have gotten a virus, and this "message/attachment" was sent to everyone in my address book. At that point, I did an update on my Norton Virus Scan and scanned my computer for viruses ....didn't find any.

 

Well last night I was over visiting my sister. I was showing her how to do things on her computer. She was downloading her email, and lo and behold, there was an email from ME.

 

Only this time, the message/attachment was an excerpt from a DIFFERENT email I'd sent to an ex boyfriend (one from 2 yrs ago, different boyfriend). Same type of excerpt though..you know, me telling him what a dipstick he was, etc.

 

What the HELL is going on? It seems just a bit suspicious to me that this "virus" is going through my old emails to ex boyfriends, copying a small portion of it, and that's what's being sent out.

 

What's unfortunate is, these excerpts don't name any names....so any guy who's in my address book that might be receiving this, he might think it's directed at HIM! LOL

 

How embarassing. There are college instructors in my address book, very important people, friends I haven't spoken to in ages, etc. They're going to think I've flipped my lid. Now I don't know for sure that these 'emails' ended up going to EVERYONE in my address book.....but from what i know about viruses that attack a person's email program/address book, they usually do.

 

Does it possibly sound like maybe someone has hacked into my computer and is doing this to make me look like a fool? For the record, I live alone so there's nobody here that has access to my computer.

 

Should I send an email to everyone in my address book (God, there must be 200 names in there) and apologize for any strange email they may have received?

 

Thanks

 

Laurynn

[Miss Mojo]

hi laurynn,

 

by any chance, did you delete these old e-mails to your ex boyfriends? is it possible they are still in your "sent items" folder?

 

i had a similar problem at work a few months ago. a virus had obviously worked its way into the computer, was grabbing text from word documents, pasting itself into an e-mail message and sending out the most bizarre e-mails to everyone in our address book. this too, was in outlook express. i did a virus scan with norton and it returned absolutely nothing. my hard drive was supposedly clean.

 

i don't know if you typed these messages to your ex's in microsoft word. if you've saved them to your hard drive and they are still there, then it's possible a virus has grabbed random text, and unfortunate that it's been messages from boyfriends.

 

maybe you could try sending e-mails to people in your address book stating your computer has a virus, it has been sending messages containing criticism that you did not compose, and to delete it if they receive it. state that it's unfortunate it didn't contain names, but it's not directed at them.

 

in this day and age of computuer viruses, most people will believe you didn't compose it (i have received some verrry strange e-mails created by viruses) and will delete it from their inbox.

 

i understand you're embarrassed, but it actually is quite funny. i'd even suggest changing passwords on your computer, and maybe even get a technician to come and have a look at it.

 

good luck and get cracking with those explanatory e-mails!

 

[Laurynn]

The notification I'd received a week ago, saying the following email from "me" to the various people whose email address was no longer valid, said the above:

 

Subject line: In my opinion, you are one disturbed

 

"You clearly are battling with many demons, and you just couldn't do that within the confines of a healthy, loving relationship. You thrive on chaos, confusion and self pity. You are a man with many secrets and many skeletons in your closet."

 

As you can see, there are no 'names' in this, so any MAN in my address book who's received this will no doubt have wondered what the hell I was talking about (funny thing, nobody did write me to ask what I was referring to).

 

I'm assuming this was an excerpt from an email to an ex boyfriend, maybe it was an excerpt from an old Word Doc? Funny, the file name for this above attachment was: "understand.bat" I would have never named any email (saved) or letter in Word Pad or Microsoft Word to an ex as "understand"....

 

Hell, maybe I didn't even write this? I just think it sounds familiar, and it does apply to how I was feeling about the ex at the time, so I'm assuming it's something I'd written back then.

 

This is so weird. Most email viruses you get are something dorky like the Snow White Virus....you know, where the content inside the attachment is written by the d*ck who created the virus, not stuff you yourself have once written. Scary. What other portions of my past emails or documents are being sent out?

 

Laurynn

[Laurynn]

Ahh! Well I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who's experienced this. Was getting worried there for a minute LOL

 

Just seems like more than a coincidence that these 2 emails I've supposedly sent contained excerpts from emails/letters to ex boyfriends, ya know? I could see if maybe one was that, and maybe another one was, say, an excerpt from some assignment I did.

 

I guess I'm going to have to have a good look in my sent box, to see if the original emails are still there. I've assumed that one was one I'd written to ONE ex, and the other was one I'd written to a DIFFERENT ex, but they were both boobs so the content could have applied to both, so maybe they were both excerpts from emails/letters to the same guy? LOL

 

Now, as for whether the 'ex' in question could have somehow hacked into my computer and orchestrated all this so that I'd look like a horse's butt to all the people in my address book, the guy doesn't have enough computer smarts to insert a floppy disk. LOL (well, unless he got wise at some point). I haven't talked to him over 2.5 yrs, he lives in a different part of the country, I'm sure he's moved on quite nicely.

 

That's funny that you didn't pick up anything when you ran Norton's either. SO much for antivirus software!! sheesh.

 

Tony, if you're reading this, did you receive any of these whacko emails from me?..cuz you're in my address book. And Miss Mojo, I think you might be in my address book.....did you happen to get any strange ones?

 

Thanks!

 

Laurynn

[Tony T]

YOU ASK: "Tony, if you're reading this, did you receive any of these whacko emails from me?..cuz you're in my address book."

 

Well, I'm not really the kind of guy who would discuss that information in a forum. It's pretty personal, you know.

 

But if you really want the answer, read the cover story in the National Inquirer week after next.

[the falsely accused cat]

yeah. it will be right after page one, after my heartwrenching story about being a falsely accused cat. Just look for the headlines:

 

"Tails of Purrsecution: Life as an Alleged Milk-spiller"

 

YOU ASK: "Tony, if you're reading this, did you receive any of these whacko emails from me?..cuz you're in my address book." Well, I'm not really the kind of guy who would discuss that information in a forum. It's pretty personal, you know. But if you really want the answer, read the cover story in the National Inquirer week after next.

[Miss Mojo]

i think this "understand.bat" is a worm of sorts. if you haven't deleted the e-mail, try sending it to symantec asking if they can analyse it for you. i know there is a worm "911", which is a .bat file but this tends to pick up info and mess with IP addresses and microsoft outlook from computers that are networked.

 

you might even consider upgrading norton to the latest version if you don't already have it. they also have a new program out called "internet security" (or something like that) that protects from hackers, viruses and threats to your privacy, and also contains a firewall. this program can only be used on personal computers.

 

(i think i should rep for symantec!)

 

you also have one less e-mail to worry about...i didn't get one. my e-mail address went kaput so it doesn't exist anymore.

 

still, whoever wrote it, it's well said and they probably deserved it anyway!

 

p.s. you might consider a bit of housekeeping on your pc and get rid of any letters, files etc that are of a personal nature or put them onto a floppy. crazy stuff huh?

[Miss Mojo]

still, whoever wrote it, it's well said and

they probably deserved it anyway!

i.e. the GUY deserved that well-written mouthful!

[Ed]

Hi Laurynn,

 

The description you gave sounds like a virus. Particularly, the Sircam virus.

 

Check out the description at Symantec's web site.

 

Symantec also has a Sircam removal tool you can download for free.

 

Ed

[Laurynn]

Definitely going to check that out, thanks..I appreciate that, and the help from Miss Mojo, too :-)

 

Laurynn

Hi Laurynn, The description you gave sounds like a virus. Particularly, the Sircam virus. Check out the description at Symantec's web site . Symantec also has a Sircam removal tool you can download for free. Ed