January 2004

January 26, 2004

PSA: New Email Worm

11:42 PM EST

There is a new email worm out there, and it's a fast moving one. Our email server went from relatively calm earlier today, to getting hit with virus-filled messages several times a second.

For detailed information, here's Symantec's page on the virus:
http://www.sarc.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.novarg.a@mm.html

There's also news coverage at CNET and CNN:

When loaded, some versions of the worm launch Notepad and show random characters. At the same time it replicates itself and installs a "keystroke" program that allows a hacker to break in and record everything being typed, including passwords and credit card numbers.

The worm sends out a slew of messages that forced some companies to shut down their e-mail gateways to stop the infection, said Vincent Gullotto, who runs Network Associates' McAfee Anti-Virus Emergency Response Team.

MyDoom also appeared to launch a Denial of Service attack on the site for SCO Group, a California company which recently sued IBM, challenging that firm's intellectual property in parts of Linux. SCO.com was inaccessible for some time Monday afternoon.

Anti-virus experts said MyDoom was on track to hit even more machines than Nimda, a 2001 worm that spread widely with an attachment that read "Readme.exe."

As usual, please take the following precautions when using email:

Use a recent anti-virus program that's always updated withauto-protect and email protection.
Update your virus definition weekly. If your update subscription has expired, it does not cost much to renew the subscription.
Don't open attachments from other people unless you're expecting it.

January 20, 2004

HeavenGames

They Said It Would Never Happen

3:45 PM EST

You may remember the discussion we had on the linking of articles without comments.
You may remember people complaining the mods are biased.
You may even remember some people think The Library is a den of baby-eating Liberals.

It's about to change...

Please welcome KotC formerly known as Stoffel to the ranks of Library Moderators. KotC is a long term member of Heavengames and has been involved in many historical and political discussions. His historical love is sword fighting and his political orientation is distinctly to the right of yours truly.

Now I'm asking all of you rowdy liberals (you know who you are) to behave and not resort to such pettiness as name calling when you suddenly find a mod not agreeing with you, or with the way you present your opinion.

As for you right-wingers, please remember I've asked KotC to be a moderator first, so you may actually get slapped on your fingers by him if you break the forum rules.
Doing so does not suddenly turn him into a Liberal, right?

You may also see him helping out moderating the History Forum.

Please give him a big hand.
You can do so here.