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The Good Times email virus is a hoax!
If anyone repeats the hoax, please show them the FAQ.
G o o d T i m e s V i r u s H o a x
--------
M i n i F A Q
by Les Jones
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
February 6, 1996
This information can be freely reproduced in any medium,
as long as the information is unmodified.
A FAQ, if you're new to the Internet, is a document that answers
Frequently Asked Questions. This Mini FAQ is a summary of, and a
reference to, the full FAQ, which has much more information about
this
and other hoaxes. Instructions for retrieving the full FAQ are at the
end of this message. The Mini FAQ is short enough for faxes, message
boards, company memos, and people with short attention spans.
Is the Good Times email virus a hoax?
Yes. It's a hoax.
America Online, government computer security agencies, and makers of
anti-virus software have declared Good Times a hoax. See Online
References at the end of the FAQ.
The hoax has been around since at least November of 1994. Since that
time, no copy of the alleged virus has ever been found, nor has there
been a single verified case of a viral attack.
I'm new to the Internet. What is the Good Times virus hoax?
The story is that a virus called Good Times is being carried by
email.
Just reading a message with "Good Times" in the subject line will
erase your hard drive, or even destroy your computer's processor.
Needless to say, it's a hoax, but a lot of people believed it.
Some of the companies that have reportedly fallen for the hoax
include
AT&T, CitiBank, NBC, Hughes Aircraft, Microsoft, Texas Instruments,
and dozens or hundreds of others. There have been outbreaks at
numerous colleges.
The U.S. government has not been immune. Some of the government
agencies that have reportedly fallen victim to the hoax include the
Department of Defense, the FCC, and NASA.
The full Good Times Virus Hoax FAQ has more information about the
origins of the hoax, and variations on the text of the hoax.
What was the CIAC bulletin?
On December 6, 1994, the U.S. Department of Energy's CIAC (Computer
Incident Advisory Capability) issued a bulletin declaring the Good
Times virus a hoax and an urban legend. The bulletin was widely
quoted
as an antidote to the hoax. The original document can be found at the
address in Online References at the end of the mini FAQ, and is
included verbatim in the full FAQ. CIAC issued another bulletin on
April 24, 1995 to reiterate that Good Times is a hoax.
Online References
CIAC Notes 94-05, 95-09, and especially 94-04
http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/notes/Notes04c.shtml
http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/notes/Notes05d.shtml
http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/notes/Notes09.shtml
Data Fellows' description of Good Times
http://www.datafellows.fi/v-descs/goodtime.htm
Australian Cer
Note
ftp://ftp.auscert.org.au/pub/auscert/advisory/AL-95.02.virus.hoax.retu
rns
Where can I find this FAQ and the complete FAQ?
The Good Times Virus Hoax FAQ and Mini FAQ
The mini FAQ is a greatly simplified version of this FAQ. At two
pages, it's short enough for message boards, faxes, mailing lists,
and
people with short attention spans.
http://www.usit.net/public/lesjones/goodtimes.html
http://www.usit.net/public/lesjones/gtminifaq.html
http://users.aol.com/macfaq/goodtimes.html
http://users.aol.com/macfaq/gtminifaq.html
Via FTP:
ftp://usit.net/pub/lesjones/good-times-virus-hoax-faq.txt
ftp://usit.net/pub/lesjones/good-times-virus-hoax-mini-faq.txt
ftp://users.aol.com/macfaq/good-times-virus-hoax-faq.txt
ftp://users.aol.com/macfaq/good-times-virus-hoax-mini-faq.txt
On Tue, 18 Jan 2000 22:37:56 -0000, Jessica Roberts wrote:
>----- Original Message -----
>From: Elizabeth Robertshaw <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>To: nobby <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Sent: Sunday, January 16, 2000 7:36 AM
>Subject: Fw: Fw: Virus Information
>
>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Becki Campbell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> Date: 18 January 2000 15:10
>> Subject: Fwd: Fw: Virus Information
>>
>>
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >>From: "Elizabeth Robertshaw" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >>To: "nobby" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Lizzie Howson"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"katie hird" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"richard hodson"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"kirsten hardiman"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Beth Hammond" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Geoffrey
>> >>Chidley" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Geoff Langdale"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Daisy Morrison"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Ellen Christiansen"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Chris Ricketts" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Rob
>> Chidley"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"cass" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Cassidy M. Hahn"
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Becki Campbell" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >>Subject: Fw: Virus Information
>> >>Date: Sat, 15 Jan 2000 12:04:45 -0000
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>-----Original Message-----
>> >>From: Jenny Gallier <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >>To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>;
>> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >>Date: 17 January 2000 19:18
>> >>Subject: : Virus Information
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> >>From: "Howard Topper" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >> >>To: "Sue Haddrill" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Sue Grubba"
>> >> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Nicky Leigh"
>> >> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Louise Kitchen"
>> >> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Jim Monkhouse"
>> >> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Ian Buckley"
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Ellie
>> >> >>Stephens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Chris + Clare French"
>> >> >><[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Anna Scharf"
>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,"Alison
>> >> >>Topper" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>> >> >>Subject: Virus Information
>> >> >>Date: Fri, 14 Jan 2000 16:52:48 -0000
>> >> >>
>> >> >>PASS THIS ON TO ANYONE YOU HAVE AN E-MAIL ADDRESS FOR.
>> >> >>
>> >> >>If you receive an email titled "It Takes Guts to Say Jesus"
>> >> >>
>> >> >>DO NOT OPEN IT.
>> >> >>It will erase everything on your hard drive.
>> >> >>This information was announced yesterday morning from IBM;
>> >> >>AOL states that this is a very dangerous virus, much worse than
>> >> >>"Melissa," and that there is NO remedy for it at this time.
>> >> >>Some very sick individual has succeeded in using the reformat
>> >> >>function from Norton Utilities causing it to completely erase
>> >> >>all documents on the hard drive. It has been designed to work
>> >> >>with Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer.
>> >> >>It destroys Macintosh and IBM compatible computers.
>> >> >>
>> >> >>This is a new, very malicious virus and not many people know about
>> >> >>it Pass this warning along to EVERYONE in your address book and
>> >> >>please share it with all your online friends ASAP so that this
>> >> >>threat may be stopped.
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Please practice cautionary measures and tell anyone that may have
>> >> >>access to your computer.
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Forward this warning to everyone that might access the Internet.
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Stuart Fawbert
>> >> >>[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Telephone (01609) 780780 ext 2481
>> >> >>Fax (01609) 779985
>> >> >>
>> >> >>Room 146
>> >> >>Advisory Support
>> >> >>Education Department
>> >> >>County Hall
>> >> >>Northallerton
>> >> >>North Yorkshire
>> >> >>DL7 8AE
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >>
>> >> >
>> >> >______________________________________________________
>> >> >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >>
>> >
>> >______________________________________________________
>> >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>
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