Sunday, May 22, 2005

Spinoffs of "The I Love You Virus"

Security experts and federal government authorities warn that offspring of the dangerous e-mail virus are now on the loose. As a public service, we present the following list of "I Love You" variations and how to recognize them:

- The "I Love You, But I'm Shy" virus never actually invades your computer but collects data about it worshipfully from afar.

- The "Unrequited Love" virus causes your computer to be so obsessed with a virus (a virus that it can never have) that it can no longer function.

- The "Love The One You're With" virus hangs around your computer, but the whole thing is just temporary until it can find the computer that it really wants to invade.

- The "Can't We Just Be Friends" virus makes your computer think it's interested in invading. Then, just when your computer is getting excited about the invasion, it breaks off the connection with your computer, dashing its hard drive against the rocks.

- The "Happily Married" virus invades only one computer and stays with it for life.

- The "Unhappily Married" virus spends a long time negotiating with a computer, finally invades it, and then strays to other computers from time to time.

- The "I Can't Commit" virus hangs around a computer for a long time and frequently sends messages that it intends to invade, but is really just interested in hanging out with your computer's data.

- The "I Want A Divorce" virus sends repeated, hard-to-read messages that your computer isn't working and takes half of your computer's best data in an ugly network session.

- The "Stalker" virus spends unnatural amounts of time monitoring your computer, collecting data your computer has thrown away and tries to record all of its functions.

- The "Forever Single" virus causes your computer to focus solely on other computers that are totally incompatible with it.

- The "Deadbeat Dad" virus invades your computer, spawns an entirely new database, then refuses to help update it as it grows.

No comments: