Sounds Like A Fake Virus Report – But Not This Time

Every time I get an email like the one below, I check it out on Snopes or Urban Legends, and usually they are not true, just a stupid form of chain letter spam.  This one I am sorry to say is real.

"Subject: virus warning, please tell your friends
This one checks out and is a bona fide real virus so hence the warning.
Any email with "Mail Server Report" in the subject line is a new virus and should not be opened. It comes with an attachment in zip format. Apparently there is a Zip file attached so be very weary of any thing with a zip file on it.
The message tells you that a worm was detected in an e-mail that you sent out and asks you to open and install the attachment to fix the problem. Only, it IS the problem! DO NOT DO IT! Delete the e-mail.
This is a real threat.
You can check it out at Snopes:
http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/mailserver.asp"

You can Check it out for yourself at the Snopes address or Urban Legends at http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/virushoaxes1/a/mail_server.htm.

Never ever open an attachment from a source not know to you.  You can forward suspicious emails with attachments to VirusTotal (scan@virustotal.com) to get a fre report confirming whether the attachment is safe or not.  Read my article at http://www.security.wyzguys.net/09Email.htm for more information about VirusTotal.

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About the Author:

I am a cybersecurity and IT instructor, cybersecurity analyst, pen-tester, trainer, and speaker. I am an owner of the WyzCo Group Inc. In addition to consulting on security products and services, I also conduct security audits, compliance audits, vulnerability assessments and penetration tests. I also teach Cybersecurity Awareness Training classes. I work as an information technology and cybersecurity instructor for several training and certification organizations. I have worked in corporate, military, government, and workforce development training environments I am a frequent speaker at professional conferences such as the Minnesota Bloggers Conference, Secure360 Security Conference in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, the (ISC)2 World Congress 2016, and the ISSA International Conference 2017, and many local community organizations, including Chambers of Commerce, SCORE, and several school districts. I have been blogging on cybersecurity since 2006 at http://wyzguyscybersecurity.com

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