msmith@topaz.rutgers.edu (Mark Robert Smith) (03/30/89)
The report is a little muddled. It turns out that there is a bug in AM-40 or AM-41, a menu program for PKZIP that is NOT written or distributed by PKWARE. PKZ092 contains no major bugs (so far). THIS IS NOT A VIRUS! Keith Peterson had a good explanation for the problem, but I neglected to save it. Keith? Mark -- Mark Smith (alias Smitty) "Be careful when looking into the distance, RPO 1604; P.O. Box 5063 that you do not miss what is right under your nose." New Brunswick, NJ 08903-5063 rutgers!topaz.rutgers.edu!msmith (OK, Bob?) msmith@topaz.rutgers.edu Copyright 1989, Mark Smith. All Rights Reserved.
cc1@valhalla.cs.ucla.edu (Max Kislik) (03/31/89)
In article <Mar.29.23.09.18.1989.17172@topaz.rutgers.edu> msmith@topaz.rutgers.edu (Mark Robert Smith) writes: >THIS IS NOT A VIRUS! I don't know about you people, but when I downloaded pkzip 092 and played with it for a while, it sure as hell made my hard disk crash!!!!! I had to reformat the sucker!!!!!! -- MAD MAX
dmt@mtunb.ATT.COM (Dave Tutelman) (04/02/89)
In article <22432@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> cc1@cs.ucla.edu (Max Kislik) writes: >In article <Mar.29.23.09.18.1989.17172@topaz.rutgers.edu> msmith@topaz.rutgers.edu (Mark Robert Smith) writes: > >>THIS IS NOT A VIRUS! > >I don't know about you people, but when I downloaded pkzip 092 and played >with it for a while, it sure as hell made my hard disk crash!!!!! Fine, but that doesn't make it a virus. Too many people cheapen the language by grabbing a stylish buzzword and using it to mean ANYTHING! That has happened with "virus"! Since the news media picked up on the "Internet Virus" (which was not quite a true software virus, but close) some people are using the term "virus" for every program that behaves other than they expect. Please stop. In the past month, on this net, I have seen the term "virus" applied to: - Ordinary (albeit severe) bugs, like the one noted above. If it misfunctions and trashes your hoard disk, it's a bug, not a virus. - Nasty but not-self-propagating programs. If it deliberately trashes your hard disk, but doen't self-propagate, it's not a virus. - A utility program that does its record-keeping in unadvertised hidden directories. Doesn't self-propagate? STILL not a virus. The terms "virus" and "worm" are distinct, but both require the ability of the program to propagate itself. A simple bug or trojan horse isn't a virus. Now, could someone who really knows please critique my understanding of the terms: WORM: A program that replicates itself in one or more machines, though the interesting case is the worm that finds other attached machines and makes copies of itself on them. It propagates by running itself on the new machine, looking for other attached machines. VIRUS: A program that attaches itself to other programs and hides in them, propagating to other machines as the "host" program is deliberately moved to those machines. It propagates by finding programs in each machine, to which it attaches itself. +---------------------------------------------------------------+ | Dave Tutelman | | Physical - AT&T Bell Labs - Lincroft, NJ | | Logical - ...att!mtunb!dmt | | Audible - (201) 576 2442 | +---------------------------------------------------------------+
jms@hcx.uucp (Michael Stanley) (04/02/89)
In article <1459@mtunb.ATT.COM>, dmt@mtunb.ATT.COM (Dave Tutelman) writes: > > Too many people cheapen the language by grabbing a stylish buzzword > and using it to mean ANYTHING! That has happened with "virus"! > > Since the news media picked up on the "Internet Virus" (which was not > quite a true software virus, but close) some people are using the > term "virus" for every program that behaves other than they expect. > Please stop. > Remember when this happened to the word 'hackers'. I can remember when the term hacker applied to anyone who like to write/tinker-with software as a hobby. Then the media picked up on those computer users who broke into other systems, but they didn't know what to call them. Somewhere they heard the term hacker (no doubt many of these computer mis-users actually WERE hackers, and the name began to take on a new meaning. At least this is my understanding of what happened. Its all part of how the news today has become more geared toward sensationalism and less geared to actually presenting important information on the world around us. The sad thing is that we can't do a lot about it. So I hope it doesn't happen, but the word virus MAY be corrupted also (who knows). You know? Its getting to the point where I only watch the MacNeil, Lehrer Newshour on public television these days (at least for news information). CNN doesn't seem to bad depending on the time of day and which programs they are showing. Oh well, thats the way things are, so we might as well get used to it. Michael Stanley (...!uunet!harris.cis.ksu.edu!jms@hcx)