PUNE, February 25: Panic is the latest message to sweep the Internet of late. Websters the world over have received warnings relayed to them by concerned friends and kin, of a malicious virus disguised as electronic mail that wipes out the recipient's hard disk. The warning has however, turned out to be a hoax.The warnings said E-mail with subject matter ``Join the party, Join the Crew, Returned or Unable to Deliver,'' contained a deadly virus which could damage the hard disk. Panic set in and warnings were flashed all across the globe of this sinister danger lurking in a tempting package. The anxiety only multiplied when a message from England replied that they had received just such a message from the US.A few desperate calls made to virus experts in the city however, helped dispel the fears and expose the hoax with some cold logic and computer fundamentals. However, not ready to go on without a second opinion, the internet was scoured for more information on the warning. The verdict was unanimous. NoE-mail exists that can even tickle your CPU, let alone wipe out your hard disk drive.According to Kailash and Sanjay Katkar of Cat Computer Services Pvt Ltd, a leading company engaged in the manufacture of anti-virus packages, a virus simply cannot exist in an E-mail text message. They also cannot exist in USENET (newsgroup) postings or simply ``float'' around the internet. This is because viruses and other system-destroying bugs can only exist in system files, and since E-mail is a text file and not a system file, it cannot be a virus. Therefore, when you read an E-mail (the actual message), you are not executing any malicious code that will spell the end of your precious CPU.Also, viruses are almost always OS (operating system)-specific. Meaning, a virus programmed to corrupt a DoS-based system will not be recognised by a Macintosh computer, and vice versa.These warnings, ostensibly circulated by ``well wishers'' do not stand up to scrutiny by one who is familiar with computer viruses. For example,the friendly warnings are very nebulous about the OS-specific aspect, and sometimes ignore it altogether.Another aspect of these circulars is that they are replete with strange nonsensical technical jargon used to confuse and scare the reader. So then, can you really get a system-crippling virus via E-mail or not? The answer to that is an emphatic NO. However, if the E-mail has a file tagged to it, that file could very well contain a virus. And one would be well-advised to scan the file with any of the latest anti-virus protection kits available.A call to the VSNL, the only Internet service providers in India, revealed that they are neither aware of the warnings nor the fact that these are a mere hoax. ``We receive this sort of mail everyday, and it is very difficult to check which one of them is a virus,'' responded Milind Sonawane from the help desk of VSNL, Pune. The best way then, to deal with such electronic vandalism is to post a reply to the source of your warning and inform the sender of thehoax.
