# Viruses. Here's an idea - Don't fucking open attachments! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 27, 2004, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390 "2004-02-27T01:52:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2004, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/41 "2004-02-29T16:01:55Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > It’s not the cookies I’m worried about; it’s the actual viruses that my anti-virus program is finding that worry me. Name one specific virus, or the next time you do a sweep, save the name. Then go to [antivirus.com](http://antivirus.com) or symantec and look it up. Then you can see how it propogates. Maybe you will recognize some of the file names. Still, I don’t see how you are getting infected with worms if you never open an attachment and everything else is up to date. That’s why I want to see a specific name so we can point a finger. As far as popups, there are popup killer prgs (sorry, don’t have a link handy), but some legitimate sites use popups for data that you really want to see which are then blocked. There’s always a tradeoff. See if you can associate the popups with a particular URL. If you can, then they are not random and probably not caused by some installed adware, but part of the site’s HTML code. I get these all the time. Also, disable EVERYTHING (even systray) out of your startup group except known antivirus stuff and reboot. Did anything you disabled become reenabled? If so, track it down, it may be something you don’t want (but I have seen legitimate prgs, like printer helpers, helpfully reinstall themselves). Run your computer for a while to see if the popup problem goes away. Reenable one prg at a time to see if the problem comes back. Time-consuming, but it should be educational. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2004, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/42 "2004-02-29T19:56:39Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > \Still, I don’t see how you are getting infected with worms if you never open an attachment and everything else is up to date. That’s why I want to see a specific name so we can point a finger. > > As far as popups, there are popup killer prgs (sorry, don’t have a link handy), but some legitimate sites use popups for data that you really want to see which are then blocked. There’s always a tradeoff. > \ I didn’t say I never opened attachments; a class I’m taking right now required me to open two attachments from my instructor. These are the only attachments I’ve opened in years; I guess it’s entirely possible that I got the virus from one of these two (or both). Doesn’t seem likely (law of averages and all that), but possible. I don’t actually have a problem with pop-ups; I downloaded Freedom Anti-Virus from my ISP, and it’s blocked all the pop-ups since then. And for another $5/month, I can get firewall protection too. I’m still mulling that one over. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/43 "2004-03-01T17:04:37Z")
**Featherlou,** an article in today’s Washington Post is good reading and may apply to your case, about [browser hijacking.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14264-2004Feb28.html) Don’t overlook the second page. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/44 "2004-03-01T17:24:39Z")
Well, I learned something new today and it was this: The person who detects a virus infection on the company’s computers is the person who will be suspected of having put it there. Four of the machines on my office network got infected by the W32/Opaserv virus, so I set about fixing the problem (which was actually pretty simple), but because my machine is one of those affected, and I happened to notice the problem, it must be something I’ve done :rolleyes: Furthermore, it just drove my boss even further into his stone-age paranoia - he won’t let me connect the office network to the outside world at all, for fear of hackers and viruses, regardless of whether I set up a mail server that strips all attachments and implement multiple firewalls etc. (All emails have to be done on a single, stand-alone machine, which is not part of the network. Grrrrr). ---
**Author:** ![Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krisfer_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/45 "2004-03-01T17:25:47Z")
_shrugs_ Well I picked up two worms last month just trying to forward the mail to my ISP for their investigation. So screw you and your “don’t fuckin open attachments duh” shit. ---
**Author:** ![CN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@CN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CN)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2004, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390/46 "2004-03-02T14:10:57Z")
> [@APOC](#): > > B: regularly update the IDS signatures in your personal firewall of choice , Why does my firewall need a copy of Iain Duncan Smith’s signature? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/viruses-heres-an-idea-dont-fucking-open-attachments/231390.md?page=2)