andy chapman

Sent: Wednesday, August 23, 2006 11:05 PM

PLEASE INFORM EVERYONE

Emails with pictures of Osama Bin-Laden hanged are being sent and the moment that you open these emails your computer will crash and you will not be able to fix it!

If you get an email along the lines of "Osama Bin Laden Captured"
or "Osama Hanged" don't open the attachment.

This e-mail is being distributed through countries around the globe, but mainly in the US and Israel.

Be considerate & send this warning to whomever you know.
< BR> PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CONTACTS:

You should be alert during the next days:
Do not open any message with an attached file called "Invitation" regardless of who sent it.

It is a virus that opens an Olympic Torch which "burns" the whole hard disc C of your computer.

This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list, that is why you should send this e-mail to all your contacts.

It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called "invitation", though sent by a friend, do not open it and shut down your computer immediately.

This is the worst virus announced by CNN, it has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever.

This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus.

This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

JohnF

Sounds like another hoax to me.

Variations on the Olympic Torch hoax can be found here:

http://vil.mcafee.com/hoax.asp

Best just to delete and ignore.

JF

immac

There is nothing on the major anti-virus web sites to support this warning.

Ian

lewismark

There is a post about this virus HERE

It is a forum but not connected with Turkey so i dont think it violates the posting rules of this forum.

Also on the bbc site which you can read HERE

immac

Yes, but one web posting is one year old and the other is two years old - not "...virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday."
And, even if they are genuine viruses, they are not beyond the capacity of any anti-virus software.

Ian

JohnF

As I said... a hoax.

It is a rehash of the "Invitation" hoax using a subject that is fairly topical. However, as a matter of course it is unadvisable to ever open an email attachment from someone you don't know; in fact, sometimes it is just as dangerous to do it from someone you DO know...

Taken from http://www.hoax-slayer.com

Commentary:
This "warning" message claims that an email with an attached file named "Invitation" contains a virus that will destroy the hard drive of the infected computer. According to the message, the attachment opens an "Olympic Torch, which "burns" the whole hard disc C of your computer". However, the claims in the message are untrue. The message is simply a rehashed version of the long running Virtual Card for You virus hoax (see example below) and should not be taken seriously.

An examination of the two messages reveals that they share very similar wording and attempt to perpetrate the same falsehoods. Both hoaxes claim that the information has been announced by CNN, which is untrue. There is nothing on the CNN website about a virus like the one described in the message. Both also claim that the virus has been classified by Microsoft as "the most destructive virus ever" and that the virus "destroys the Zero Sector" of the infected hard drive. These claims are unfounded.

There is no mention of such a virus on any of the major anti-virus company websites other than articles debunking the "warning". McAfee, the company named in the message, dismisses the warning as a hoax.

If you receive this hoax message, please do not forward it to others. Virus hoaxes such as this one do nothing more than clutter inboxes and spread misinformation. If you receive a virus warning via email, always take the time to check the veracity of the message on a reputable anti-virus or anti-hoax website.

And if thats not enough... here is the link to what McAfee say about it:

http://vil.nai.com/vil/content/v_98893.htm


JF