Re: CNN Article "Linux users unscathed by ILOVEYOU"

[Jon 'maddog' Hall, Executive Director, Linux International]

[EMAIL PROTECTED] said:
>   Could the same thing happen on Unix?  Of course -- The Great Worm of
> '88 was the exact same thing:  A hole in a single mail tool used
> everywhere -- namely, sendmail -- is what allowed that worm to move
> from system to system. 

A hole that was left open as a debugging tool, and once that debugging tool was
turned off, the worm stopped; yet sendmail continued to work as specified.

There is a difference between a hole created as a bug, and a bug created as
a feature.  Microsoft has done the latter.

On another note, I recently received this version of the eye-luv-u virus
that seems to work for Unix systems:

   From: Oleg Kiselev <...>
   Subject: ilove.u

   This virus works on the honor system.

   Please forward this message to everyone you know
   and then delete a bunch of your files at random.


md
-- 
=============================================================================
Jon "maddog" Hall
Executive Director, Linux(R) Intern'l    Director of Linux Evangelism         

Linux International                      VA Linux Systems                         
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Amherst, N.H. 03031-3032 U.S.A.          Sunnyvale, CA 94089
Internet: [EMAIL PROTECTED]                  [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Board Member: Uniforum Association, USENIX Association

(R)Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in several countries.


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