On Thu, 2 Oct 2003, David Reid wrote: > As described by Mapinfo, the virus which uses Mapbasic to do it's bidding, > part of the function is common process, however, there were references to a > commonality with some of the file naming conventions the attacker uses.
There are so many ways you could turn MB code to serve the Dark Side that I shudder to think what we'll see in the future. MapBasic may run slow, but it's very powerful. And BTW, that reported virus is pure MapBasic; no "common" DLL involved. The active mbx is just given a different file name, but MapInfo will execute it as long as the code has a MapBasic signature. However, what's encouraging is that the early warning about this latest MapInfo virus appeared in this list even before MapInfo was generally aware of it. But MapInfo was quick to analyze it and get the word out too, which is also encouraging. I hope that openness continues. Forewarned is forearmed. I just hope it doesn't chill the shareware opportunities. Also, we're looking into how an attachment could be passed to the list. The security policy we're currently using says that's not supposed to happen. Therefore, you all should treat any attachments on MI-L mail like they were red bag biohazards and DON'T TOUCH THEM! You can't even trust the From: lines and assume that it's okay because the sender is a "regular." These are currently being spoofed. I know I've had my name used by some dipstick in Korea to push about a ton of spam last week. What a world! If it wasn't for the comic relief of the California recall election, I'd be crying in my beer. - Bill Thoen --------------------------------------------------------------------- List hosting provided by Directions Magazine | www.directionsmag.com | To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Message number: 8639
