Got this email today...should I install the attachment?

Unless you want spam, I'd remove your email from that post.

And though you probably know, installing the patch would be a very bad idea.

I wouldn't touch it for anything less than bond in the amount required to clean up the disk.

A month ago, I received an email attachment from a friend (well known on a2k), and checked with her before opening it. In fact, she had sent me nothing with an attachment - ever.

Scroll through the old a2k Computer and Internet forums to find the address for windows updates. Much better you go to them. They do not come to you.

Any patches you need for anything you can find on Microsoft.com or the site for whatever operating system you use. That's the only place I would trust to get them.

Err, General - prob'y not a good idea to include your email address in the post. Just inviting more of the same as those spam bastids troll forums collecting such info!

Re: Got this email today...should I install the attachment?


Da, comrade.

I got an e-mail with an attachment from a good friend reading "re: your contact info". I generally recognize this as a virus, usually Netsky on my comp. I called him and he said no, I am actually updating my contact info. I told him that was a bad way of heading up an e-mail these days.

Roger writes


Good policy to check unless it is somebody who regularly sends you stuff and then it should really make sense.

Not long ago that especially pernicious So-big (?) worm snagged somebody's mailbox that had my e-mail address in it. For days I received hundreds and hundreds of returned e-mails, all with attachments and accompanying messages that their software had detected a virus. These came from Honeywell, General Motors, and dozens of other well known entities as well as hundreds of addresses I didn't recognize. I hadn't sent any e-mail to any of them.

I of course immediately notified everybody on my e-mail list warning them not to download any attachment they received from me until further notice.

I ran a scan on my computer and it was virus/trojan/worm free.

Drawing and quartering is too good for people who do stuff like that.