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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

SPAM ALERT - Corrected and Updated

I deleted the first one - it was all messed up.

Brief update first though.

Jim is doing fine so far and thanks all who sent cards, etc. He and I chat almost daily on MySpace.

Ray spent a few days in the hospital with bronchitis but is now home.

Girls will be back in Merced with their dad and, if all goes well, will stay.

Weather continues hot but the last couple of days have been almost bearable. I'm leaving in a few minutes for coffee with friend Janet, the grocers, and then card playing with friends Reno and Lyman and son Tim. We went to a bbq/swim party there with the girls last weekend. I have pictures on the Kodak gallery. They didn't turn out too well but you can see how they've grown.

More later - now the SPAM alert which I should have posted sooner since I've been getting some of the emails they're discussing. I subscribe to a daily "computer tips" newsletter and this appeared this morning.

The "CNN" emails look legit; the MSNBC are phony at a glance but they look like a spoof; not a virus. I opened one of the CNN by mistake but once I saw the content, marked it as spam and deleted. I never did open the MSNBC (or don't think I did).

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I have received several phone calls this week from readers saying they have been getting a ton of spam e-mail from CNN and MSNBC. The e-mails have headlines indicating they are breaking news alerts from either of the very popular news companies. Now, I'm sure all of you are smart enough to know that CNN and MSNBC would not actually send out spam, but where are the e-mails coming from?

Well, the e-mails are an attack from a botnet. Currently, several Web sites have been taken over by the worm and they are sending out millions of e-mails a day. While the e-mails look like they are from CNN and MSNBC, they're not.

If you receive an e-mail from CNN or MSNBC, do not read it! You should immediately delete those messages and mark them as spam. Reading those e-mails and clicking on the links inside will put your computer at risk. You will be prompted to install a file that says it's an update for the Flash player. That's actually a virus. Installing that program will infect your system and turn your computer into a spam machine.

Usually, I would say you should report the issue to the company that is being spoofed, but in this case, they're already very aware of the issue. Just hang in there and the messages will stop once the offending computers are taken offline and disinfected.

If you have been fooled into installing the "Flash Update," you should run a full virus scan immediately. Until next time, stay safe out there, my friends!

16 comments:

Diane@Diane's Place said...

Thanks for the update and the spam/virus alert, Ann. Hope y'all are doing well and that Ray is continuing to improve.

I miss you posting on your blog.

Love and hugs,

Diane

Susie said...

Hi Ann,
Good to see an update from you. Hope your summer is going well!
Thanks for the alert on spam.
xo

Carin said...

Yeah, I"m being bombed with those. CNN, MSNBC, Microsoft, everything under the sun. Now It's all about Britny Spears. Bla bla bla.

Glad Jim is doing well. I've been thinking about him a lot. I hope the girls do well with their dad. They've had so much termoil that I hope this stability works.

~*Jobthingy*~ said...

glad to hear an update and all is well over there,.

thanks for the spam alert. i hadnt heard about that one. ill be sure to pass it on *hugs*

Puss-in-Boots said...

It's good to hear from you, Ann and to know that all is relatively well in your world.

Thanks for the spam alert...I wonder why people bother to do that sort of thing. They must lead pretty boring lives if that's all they can do in their day.

Keep well.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the information regarding the spam. I have indded received a large amount of the CNN updates but didn't open any of them. Phew.

peppylady (Dora) said...

Glad to hear news form you and was wondering if things was ok.
Sound like nothing to exciting going on which I'm glad my life is uneventful.

The coffee is always on over at my blog.

Pat said...

Being the trusting soul I am - not -
I delete everything I don't recognise.

Gary said...

As always, nice to catch up on your busy and heartfelt life. Good luck with all the family happenings (and the spam).

Alice said...

I keep getting emails from my *bank* telling me that my account is in trouble and I need to email them all my details.

RIIIIGGGGHT.

I wouldn't mind so much if they actually got the name of the bloody bank right. I'm with HSBC. The *bank* that keeps emailing me is Barclays.

...Spammers. ...Sigh.

I'm sorry Jim has had to be posted to Iraq, but glad that he's doing ok. I'll take a look at the photos now to check up on the growth spurts of the girls.

:-) xxx

OldLady Of The Hills said...

Thanks for the "Heads-Up"...I have a problem with Adobe Flas=h Player but it didb't come through any email that was SPAM....But, I am glad to know about this and will hopefully remember, if I get anything like that.

Shrinky said...

How good to see you again, my friend. Give Ray my best, you know we are all rooting for him. Glad to hear the girls will be with their father soon. I'll keep an eye out for that virus you mentioned, thanks for the alert. x

Janice Seagraves said...

Just poping in to say "hi".

Janice~

Meow (aka Connie) said...

HI Ann, I know you posted this almost a month ago, but I haven't been here for ages.
Hope all is well in your world.
Have a great weekend.
Take care, Meow

Merle said...

Dear Ann ~~ I hope you are doing well and that the weather cools a bit for you.
How is Jim getting on? I hope he is OK.
And I hope the girls are doing well with their father - it would be great if that works out well for them all and their Dad
Glad that Ray is over the bronchitis and hope that he keeps well. Take great care, dear friend,I miss your posts, but understand about the hot room to post.
Much love, Merle.

Sandy Hatcher-Wallace said...

Hi Ann, Thanks for the alert on the spam and flash player. I didn't know what got my computer but I remember trying to load a flash player and then my computer started acting funny. I got a virus or two and my computer went into the shop. I'm not opening mail I don't recognize or downloading anything anymore.