'Here You Have' - Nitwits on the Net

"New Virus Spreading Using Old School Tricks"
John Sukowaty, TopTechReviews.net (September 11, 2010)

"There is another brand new virus dubbed the 'Here you have', which is spread quickly via an attachment sent to your email. The email shows a link that will send you to a site that may have adult content on it. The virus takes effect as soon as the user clicks the link. Spreading to every single person in your address book.

A virus like this can spread quickly through company email systems where hundreds of contacts can be found. This tactic is very old school and was made very popular by the Anna Kournikova virus a couple of years ago. People hoping to see pictures of the tennis star, in the nude or otherwise, click the link and it’s all downhill from that point...."

You - have - got - to - be - kidding. People still fall for that? Apparently.

Keep reading: Not all coverage of 'Here you have' was as devoid of specific details.

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"New 'Here You Have' Virus Uses Old School Tactics"
The Wall Street Journal (September 10, 2010)

"The creators of the 'Here you have' virus have shown that many computer users continue to fall for the most basic of Internet ruses.

"On Thursday, the 'Here you have' virus, which targets computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system, spread rapidly via an email containing a link to a Web site that supposedly offered shared PDF documents or pornographic movie files. Clicking on the link executed the virus.

"Once executed, the virus attempted to forward the email to all the people listed in the recipient's address book, potentially setting off a chain reaction that could eventually overload a company's email system. The virus took down email servers at US space agency NASA and companies such as cable giant Comcast Corp. (CMCSA), according to Fox News. Fox News is owned by News Corp. (NWSA), which also owns this newswire...."

Why is the Lemming not ranting about how the Windows operating system is dangerous? Viruses (this one's a worm, actually) tend to exploit particular operating systems - often particular programs.

Whoever makes those things is savvy enough to realize that a whole lot more people use Windows than, say, the Möbius Operating System. If they want their malware to be effective, they'll aim at widely-used systems and software.

Finally, here's an article that tells you what to look for:

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"Beware of Link: E-Mail Virus Plays Havoc With Internet"
FOXNews (September 10, 2010)

"Here you have … one heck of a mess.

"An insidious e-mail virus remained in the top five Google searches Friday, a day after it snarled traffic and took down servers at ABC, NASA, Comcast, and Google -- and possibly even swamped the Department of Homeland Security's computers.

"The Internet Storm Center, a free analysis and warning service that tracks malicious Internet activity, reported that the initial application that generated the vast cloud of spam clogging servers had been taken down, which should limit the spread of the virus Friday. And there were no new reports of infected servers Friday morning -- but the Web may not be out of the woods just yet....

"...The virus, called 'here you have' (or VBMania, though different security companies have different names for the same virus), is a simple Trojan Horse: An e-mail arrives in your inbox with the odd-but-suggestive subject line 'here you have.' The body reads 'This is The Document I told you about, you can find it Here' or 'This is The Free Download Sex Movies, you can find it Here.'..."

Seriously, Folks: Don't Click on Links in Strange Emails

It's also a bad idea to send a thousand dollars to somebody in Nigeria who says he's got lots of money for you. Or open the door at 3:00 a.m. for a pizza that you didn't order.

Recapping, this new Trojan uses a tried-and-true method of getting past the human frontal cortex.

• Subject line:
  • here you have
• Body reads:
  • 'This is The Document I told you about, you can find it Here' or
  • 'This is The Free Download Sex Movies, you can find it Here.'

Seriously: not clicking on links in dubious emails is a really good idea. No matter how much your endocrine system is screaming at you.

Related posts:

• About malware:
  • "Kneber AKA Zeus: How to Deal With It (Hint: Don't be Stupid)"
    (February 19, 2010)
• About why we're so stupid when our emotions kick in:
  • "Emotions, the Frontal Cortex, The War on Terror, Anarchists, and the Illuminati"
    Another War-on-Terror Blog (December 23, 2008)