Jake the Dog said:
it's the same for me Mark. i use [IE and various Outlook flavours] and have not had a problem. it's just a matter of using an effective anti-virus tool and keeping it's virus definition database up to date.
That is the most ridiculous, downright
crazy thing I have ever heard. Oh, I don't doubt that you personally have not had a problem
yet but you have just been very, very lucky, Jake.
This week alone we have beeen
deluged with unwanted extra work. Bugbear is everywhere. And
every single Bugbear infected computer was running Outlook. Every single one. The idiots who got Bugbear (and are having to make do without a computer this weekend because we haven't had time to fix their machines yet -
real work takes priority over self-inflicted injuries) fell into three categories, and there were roughly equal numbers in each group.
- The ultra-moron: This category of customer is running the Internet Explorer 5.0 and Outlook Express that came out of the box with Windows 98SE. They have no patches, no updates, and no anti-virus software. (There are some minor variants, of course, such as Win95B with IE 5.0.) This type, thankfully, is marginally less common than the other two - maybe just under 30% as opposed to about 40% for Type 2 and about 30% for Type 3.
- The lazy moron: This one is has no patches but does have an anti-virus program. Unfortunately, the anti-virus program is anywhere between a month and over a year out of date and is effectively useless. They got Bugbear just as readily as their ultra-moron brothers.
- The semi-bright moron: These customers are hammering on the the door of sentience but have yet to figure out how to turn the handle and come in. They run a variety of different software but the common factors are easily recognisable just the same: Windows 98, ME or XP with Internet Explorer, mostly 6.0 but some with 5.0 or 5.5. Most have both versions of Outlook (Express and regular), most have done at least some security patching, and every one has a reputable anti-virus product with the latest updates. And thet too got Bugbear, because (as is the case with all new virus epidemics) the anti-virus software updates lag the introduction of the virus itself by a measurable amount of time.
In contrast, I'll list three more types, but lump them all into one category:
- The rational user: This category of customer actually listened to our standard security briefing when we delivered their machine, or didn't listen but just followed the path of least resistance which, with a Red Hill machine, is to use the email program we put a short-cut to in the system tray (usually Netscape Messenger 4.x in a Tannin-built system, Kristi tends to use 6.x). This type of customer can be running anything from Windows 95 through to Windows XP or 2000, can be using any combination of browsers, can have the latest anti-virus updates, no updates, or no anti-virus software at all. They cover the full range of Types 1 to 3 above, with the sole exception that they do not use any variety of Outlook for email. Many of them have the Red Hill standard setup, which removes Outlook or at least deletes all shortcuts and start menu entries for it, installs Netscape Messenger as the default email client, adds Opera as well as IE 5.0, removes the Windows Scripting Host, and removes the Windows Address Book. But by no means all of them: some of them remove, replace, or reinstall parts of the above, and sometimes we are in a hurry and forget to do all of the above. Some of them have instaled Euadora or Incredimail or another email client. But none of them run Outlook. There are no prises for guessing how many of these people have rolled up this week wanting Bugbear removed from their machines: not even one.
Of all our thousands of non-Outlook using customers, not a single one has called us with the Bugbear virus. You are living on borrowed time, Jake. You too, Mark. Yes, even you guys: you are both smart enough to be right up to date with your patches and anti-virus scanners and thus fairly low-risk as these things go, but you are both at risk nevertheless. You are far,
far more likely to get a nasty virus than I am here at home (using PMMail and the latest PC-cillian), and more at rsk than Mercutio too - and last time he mentioned it, Merc wasn't using any anti-virus software at all, he just avoids Outlook and exercises care with attachments.
I removed OE6 from my XP box after the service pack 1 update which allows for removale of that component. I'll double check when I get home, but I'm confident I removed OE6...and I have outlook 2000 on my box.
