# I'm not infected by "MyDoom" am I? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 29, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496 "2004-01-29T01:30:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Aeschines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aeschines/32/16251_2.png) [@Aeschines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aeschines)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/1 "2004-01-29T01:30:39Z")
I have gotten return messages from my free Yahoo address, and one guy I know wrote to me to tell me he’d gotten a message too. To the best of my knowledge, I have not opened any viral files at home or at work. 1. Does the fact that this thing is coming from my Yahoo address mean that my comp is infected, or is mimicking this just one of its tricks? 2. Would such a message appear in my Yahoo “sent” folder? There are none. Thanks for your help. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/2 "2004-01-29T01:35:04Z")
I doubt MyDoom or any other virus can spread through web-based email. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/3 "2004-01-29T01:38:59Z")
> [@](#): > > 1. Does the fact that this thing is coming from my Yahoo address mean that my comp is infected, or is mimicking this just one of its tricks? No, spoofing the sender is a trick that most virii employ. ---
**Author:** ![Aeschines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aeschines/32/16251_2.png) [@Aeschines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aeschines)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/4 "2004-01-29T01:41:26Z")
Thanks, but how was it able to know my address? 1. For people I don’t know at all (returns from companies) 2. For people I DO know ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/5 "2004-01-29T01:56:39Z")
Some computer out there has both your email address on it, and a virus. It could be someone you know, or not. It could also be your home or office computer, if your yahoo address is on there. The addy can be in the address book, or some virii will scan files locally for emails too. Given that, virii will send copies of themselves out to each addresses on the infected computer, using those same addresses for the return address. So your email address can spread further out through other infected computers to people you’ve sent email email to and who would never have otherwise even had your address on their system. It won’t hurt to scan all your computers just to be sure. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/6 "2004-01-29T01:58:25Z")
Sorry that should read, “So your email address can spread further out through other infected computers to people you’ve _ **never** _ sent email to and who would never have otherwise even had your address on their system.” ---
**Author:** ![GSV\_Consolation\_of\_Dreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f1d935/32.png) [@GSV\_Consolation\_of\_Dreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GSV_Consolation_of_Dreams)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/7 "2004-01-29T09:15:07Z")
I believe the MyDoom virus also has the ability to generate variations of known addresses in your address book, taking a domain name and creating simple username variants such in the form: xxx@known\_domain\_from\_your\_address\_book.com ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/8 "2004-01-29T13:32:09Z")
You can also check your system [here](http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.novarg.a@mm.html) for infection. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/9 "2004-01-29T15:15:34Z")
I have been getting these returned messages on my Yahoo mail too. It’s nothing to worry about, as others have mentioned - it is just the virus spoofing your address. And now that I have made a legitimate response, I feel I have earnt a nitpick: **Virii**??? Where the heck do you get that from? Repeat after me: “One virus, Two billion **viruses**.” Not “virii”. Not “viri”. Not “virus’s”. Not “virus[sup]2[/sup]”. Jeez. How hard is it? :rolleyes: Here are a [couple](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=viruses) of [cites](http://spl.haxial.net/viruses.html) for that little rant. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2004, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-not-infected-by-mydoom-am-i/226496/10 "2004-01-29T17:47:38Z")
> [@r\_k](#): > > Jeez. How hard is it? :rolleyes: You tell me, you’re the one getting all worked and rolling your eyes. > [@](#): > > Viruses vs Virii > The spelling virii is predominant in computer science. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Virus](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Virus) :rolleyes: