Re: Fwd: Re: Urgent - First HTML Virus discovered

>   ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Subject: Re: Urgent - First HTML Virus discovered
> Resent-Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1998 11:39:07 -0500 (EST)
> Resent-From: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
> Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1998 11:35:30 -0500
> From: Chris Kreussling <CHRIS.KREUSSLING@ny.frb.org>
> To: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
>
> The "Alert" is misleading and self-serving commercial spam, if it's not
> outright false. I believe it be a hoax, since there's nothing about it on
> Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/).
>
> 1) There can be no such thing as an "HTML virus" since HTML itself delivers
> nothing that "runs" on either the server or client.
>
> 2) According to their own Web page (and yes, I disabled *everything* in my
> browser before I visited their page, and I munge all identifying information
> as my standard practice), the virus infects HTML files (with extensions *.htm
> and *.html). They have given the virus the name "HTML.internal" based on a
> comment in the HTML source which supposedly triggers the infection. These are
> the only things that are "HTML" about it.
>
> 3) From their web page: "To replicate itself the virus uses inline script
> routines written in Visual Basic. The virus will replicate only if the browser
> security settings allows script routines to access disk files." That should
> read "VBScript" and not "Visual Basic." Which means that it would affect only
> Microsoft's Internet Explorer; I'm not aware of any other browser which
> supports VBScript.
>
> I've observed an increasing volume of spam to the W3C WAI mailing lists. Is
> there anything the W3C list maintainers can do to filter this junk?
>
> Thanks
>
> <author>Chris Kreussling</author>
> <disclaimer>The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily
> reflect the position of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York or the Federal
> Reserve System.</disclaimer>

 I am the one that originally forwarded the info on the HTML virus to a member of
your group, with the thought that it may be of interest to HTML folks.  I had read
about it at www.macintouch.com.  I myself would not let Microsoft decide for me
what is valid information concerning the performance of the software.

As for this information being commercial spam, I have no association at all with
the Russian company AVP, nor have I ever been a member of the Communist Party.

Author/ Matt Kelly

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily
reflect the position of Mike's Tavern.

Received on Friday, 13 November 1998 17:09:39 UTC