Warning! to Paul Saunders!



In article <[email protected]>, Gordon <[email protected]> writes
>Paul Saunders <[email protected]> wrote
>>Craven Birds wrote:
>>
>>> That makes sense;-) Better still, I'd prefer people to use a bit of sense and not open
>>> attachments that they are not 100% sure are safe.
>>
>>Easy for knowlegeable computer users to say. It's the newbies who aren't aware of these things,
>>and there are lots of them about.
>>
>>I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
>>checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.
>>
>Hands up anyone who has NEVER opened an attachment from an old friend who has sent various
>attachments over the years, without checking back with them first. Yeaah, ok, not recently. ;-)

After deleting clear viruses, all attachments get saved to a test drive which I then check with a
virus-checker first.

NEVER open an attachment. Save it first.

Bernard Hill Braeburn Software Selkirk, Scotland
 
[email protected] said...
> This makes it seem that you are getting returned mail from mail you never sent.

And just so you know, if anyone gets an email from me from Freeserve or LineOne, it's bogus. I
do/did have FS and L1 addresses, but I don't use them *ever* for outgoing mail these days.
--
Fran If you need my email address please ask.
 
On Wed, 4 Feb 2004 22:38:37 -0000, Jiffy wrote:

><snip>
>> Hands up anyone who has NEVER opened an attachment from an old friend who has sent various
>> attachments over the years, without checking back with them first. Yeaah, ok, not recently. ;-)
>
>I NEVER open attachments without checking the file extension on them. If it's .jpg .gif .mp3 etc
>fine but .scr? No siree!

That's why I've got the "hide file extension for known types" under Folder Options>View unchecked.
Am I correct in thinking that the default behavior for Windows is to hide extensions? I've just
checked and it is. Sheesh! talk about broken software. No wonder some people are easily fooled by
picture.jpg.exe and the like.
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"
 
[email protected] said...
> I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
> checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.
>
Well maybe he doesn't.

If he's:

* checking his email on the server and deleting all the penc (good word that - it's ROT13 but a
perfectly good word in its own right
<g>) prior to download;
* blocking just about everything other than plain text;
* using 'minority' programs... /and/ using a non-Windows O/S -

Well then, he might be justly smug. Otherwise...
--
Fran If you need my email address please ask.
 
Exactly! And it's easy enough to change the icon to look like something harmless too.

Cheers, Jiffy
 
Following up to Bernard Hill

> so i'm not sure how the virus writer made the
>>connection between me and them?
>
>Someone has both addresses on their machine is one possibility.

an interesting point is that the post had the part before @ as something I have never used, so for
some reason they made up that part, perhaps they are just working from two domain names and guessing
the full email address with this latest one? Hence the large number of bounce backs.
--
Mike Reid "Art is the lie that reveals the truth" P.Picasso Walking, Wasdale, Thames path, London
etc "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site Spain, food and walking "http://www.fell-
walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
 
Following up to Paul Saunders

>> Paul, did you send me an email called Emerson, Lake and Palmer? I suspect not.
>
>I did actually (I was rather drunk at the time). Sorry, I forgot all about it, I'll write to you
>again about that.

I did reply, about photo sales.
--
Mike Reid "Art is the lie that reveals the truth" P.Picasso Walking, Wasdale, Thames path, London
etc "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site Spain, food and walking "http://www.fell-
walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
 
Following up to Paul Saunders

>I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
>checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.

Try insisting he removed your email address from his machine until he has!
--
Mike Reid "Art is the lie that reveals the truth" P.Picasso Walking, Wasdale, Thames path, London
etc "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site Spain, food and walking "http://www.fell-
walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
 
Osprey wrote
> "Paul Saunders" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Craven Birds wrote:
> >
> > > That makes sense;-) Better still, I'd prefer people to use a bit of sense and not open
> > > attachments that they are not 100% sure are safe.
> >
> > Easy for knowlegeable computer users to say. It's the newbies who aren't aware of these things,
> > and there are lots of them about.
> >
> > I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
> > checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.
>
> Lol, A first rate Pr*t and a lot of office workers! in business.

Maybe he uses a Mac. Maybe he doesn't use MS Outlook or Outlook Express.

> After saying that it's the bl**ding IT technicians fault who maintain the systems :-(

How ?

Chris
 
Following up to Phil Cook

>That's why I've got the "hide file extension for known types" under Folder Options>View unchecked.
>Am I correct in thinking that the default behavior for Windows is to hide extensions? I've just
>checked and it is. Sheesh! talk about broken software. No wonder some people are easily fooled by
>picture.jpg.exe and the like.

<goes off and checks> I imagine I found it and unchecked it ages ago, feeling ill at ease not seeing
extensions!
--
Mike Reid "Art is the lie that reveals the truth" P.Picasso Walking, Wasdale, Thames path, London
etc "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site Spain, food and walking "http://www.fell-
walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
 
In article <[email protected]>, Reid <[email protected]> writes
>Following up to Bernard Hill
>
>> so i'm not sure how the virus writer made the
>>>connection between me and them?
>>
>>Someone has both addresses on their machine is one possibility.
>
>an interesting point is that the post had the part before @ as something I have never used, so for
>some reason they made up that part, perhaps they are just working from two domain names and
>guessing the full email address with this latest one? Hence the large number of bounce backs.

The vast majority of my spams are to addresses [email protected] etc etc which I never use.

Every now and again I get what's known as a Dictionary attack. Every name starting with a letter of
the alphabet eg mary, mark, merry, ... all at my domain. When I get 3-400 of these I know I'm due
for several thousand more as the spammer goes through the other letters of the alphabet.

There are CDs that spammers can use containing 100 million email addresses: most of them (I
theorise) are made up of domain and names interchanged systematically.

Bernard Hill Braeburn Software Author of Music Publisher system Music Software written by musicians
for musicians http://www.braeburn.co.uk Selkirk, Scotland
 
In article <[email protected]>, Jiffy <[email protected]> writes
><snip>
>> Hands up anyone who has NEVER opened an attachment from an old friend who has sent various
>> attachments over the years, without checking back with them first. Yeaah, ok, not recently. ;-)
>
>I NEVER open attachments without checking the file extension on them. If it's .jpg .gif .mp3 etc
>fine but .scr? No siree! If in doubt, I save it, update virus scanner and manually check it
>before opening.
>
>Cheers, Jiffy
>
>

Add to that .scr list:

.com .cmd .exe .bat .pif .doc .xls

All can contain viruses and should be quarantined first before opening.

Bernard Hill Braeburn Software Selkirk, Scotland
 
In article <[email protected]>, Phil Cook <urwalk@p-t-
cook.freeserveSPAMTRAP.co.uk> writes
>On Wed, 4 Feb 2004 22:38:37 -0000, Jiffy wrote:
>
>><snip>
>>> Hands up anyone who has NEVER opened an attachment from an old friend who has sent various
>>> attachments over the years, without checking back with them first. Yeaah, ok, not recently. ;-)
>>
>>I NEVER open attachments without checking the file extension on them. If it's .jpg .gif .mp3 etc
>>fine but .scr? No siree!
>
>That's why I've got the "hide file extension for known types" under Folder Options>View unchecked.
>Am I correct in thinking that the default behavior for Windows is to hide extensions? I've just
>checked and it is. Sheesh! talk about broken software. No wonder some people are easily fooled by
>picture.jpg.exe and the like.

Exactly. The worst decision M$ made about Windows imo. Even in virus- free situations it confuses
people really badly: it's one of the most important things to learn when coming to Windows: programs
are associated with extensions - but if you never see extensions then you don't easily grasp this!

Bernard Hill Braeburn Software Selkirk, Scotland
 
In message <[email protected]>, Bob Hobden <[email protected]> writes
>
>"Bernard wrote in message ((snip))> >
>>
>> There are CDs that spammers can use containing 100 million email addresses: most of them (I
>> theorise) are made up of domain and names interchanged systematically.
>>
>
>What I've never understood is that I don't know anyone that has ever bought from a spammer. So why
>do they persist? It can't make economic sense surely.
>
If it costs almost nothing to send to a million addresses and only 0.01% take the bite then they
have still sold 100.

--
Martin Richardson
216/284 Munros (34/34 'Furths')
217/89 Donalds 397/1552 Marilyns 439/439 Nuttalls
 
In article <[email protected]>, Bob Hobden <[email protected]> writes
>
>"Bernard wrote in message ((snip))> >
>>
>> There are CDs that spammers can use containing 100 million email addresses: most of them (I
>> theorise) are made up of domain and names interchanged systematically.
>>
>
>What I've never understood is that I don't know anyone that has ever bought from a spammer. So why
>do they persist? It can't make economic sense surely.
>

When you're sending tens of millions then a 0.01% response is worthwhile.

Bernard Hill Selkirk, Scotland
 
Paul Saunders <[email protected]> wrote
>
>Last time I saw him he was complaining about an unfamiliar program popping up and running every
>time he booted up. Doesn't know where it came from or what it does. Doesn't seem to do any harm, he
>says. He just closes it each time after boot up.
>
>Paul

It wouldn't be god old POWER SAVING, would it? Associated with HP Scanners.
--
Gordon
 
In article <[email protected]>, Paul Saunders <[email protected]> writes
>Easy for knowlegeable computer users to say. It's the newbies who aren't aware of these things, and
>there are lots of them about.

Er....yes!

There may be a lot of very good drivers around who know bugger all about the internal
combustion engine!
--
Bill Grey http://www.billboy.co.uk
 
"Paul Saunders" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
> checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.
>
I got my sister online over Christmas, and installed Zonealarm and a free anti-virus. When I set up
Zonealarm I forgot to turn off the pop-up alerts that appear by default everytime something probes
from outside. Turns out that was a good thing to forget. She was horrified at how often it happens,
and now tells everybody she knows that they should install a firewall immediately.

Admittedly, many/most of these probes will not result in anything bad happening so it isn't as bad
as it looks. But I didn't say that:) Anything that gets people out there installing more protection
has to be a good thing...

Steve.
 
Fran wrote:

>> I have a friend who's had a computer for years and he still doesn't use a firewall or a virus
>> checker. Whenever I mention it to him he dismisses them, saying he has no need for them.
>>
> Well maybe he doesn't.
>
> If he's:
>
> * checking his email on the server and deleting all the penc (good word that - it's ROT13 but a
> perfectly good word in its own right
> <g>) prior to download;

He wouldn't know how to do that.

> * blocking just about everything other than plain text;
> * using 'minority' programs...

Doesn't block anything with anything.

> /and/ using a non-Windows O/S -

Nope, and I've noticed that his son uses Kazaa.

Paul
--
http://www.wilderness-wales.co.uk
http://www.wildwales.fsnet.co.uk
http://www.photosig.com/go/users/userphotos?id=118749
 
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