O.T. - Bogus MS Patches

Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about getting a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here !
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------

LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the thousands, literally!! - they would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference
----------------------------------------------------------------------------



"RagDyer" wrote in message ...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about getting a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here !
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

Not this is notg butsh....t

--
Regards Ron de Bruin
(Win XP Pro SP-1 XL2002 SP-2)
www.rondebruin.nl



"Ken Wright" wrote in message ...
LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the thousands, literally!! - they would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference
----------------------------------------------------------------------------



"RagDyer" wrote in message ...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about getting a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here !
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

rotflmao - Not at your misfortune though!!

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference
----------------------------------------------------------------------------



"Ron de Bruin" wrote in message
...
If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

Not this is notg butsh....t

--
Regards Ron de Bruin
(Win XP Pro SP-1 XL2002 SP-2)
www.rondebruin.nl



"Ken Wright" wrote in message
...
LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the thousands, literally!! - they
would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference
----------------------------------------------------------------------------



"RagDyer" wrote in message ...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about getting a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here !
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003







---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

Thanks guys for letting me know what I'm in for.

I guess I've just been baptized with the trickle of water on the head ...
not the dunking in the river.
(yet to come ?!?)
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ron de Bruin" wrote in message
...
If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

Not this is notg butsh....t

--
Regards Ron de Bruin
(Win XP Pro SP-1 XL2002 SP-2)
www.rondebruin.nl



"Ken Wright" wrote in message
...
LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the thousands,
literally!! - they would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--



"RagDyer" wrote in message
...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about getting
a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in
some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates
or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here !
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

I had 376 last night and around 200 so far today :-(

--

Regards
Andy Wiggins
www.BygSoftware.com
Home of "Save and BackUp",
"The Excel Auditor" and "Byg Tools for VBA"


"Ron de Bruin" wrote in message
...
If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

Not this is notg butsh....t

--
Regards Ron de Bruin
(Win XP Pro SP-1 XL2002 SP-2)
www.rondebruin.nl



"Ken Wright" wrote in message
...
LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the
thousands, literally!! - they would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--



"RagDyer" wrote in message
...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about
getting a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in
some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates
or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here
!
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

Between Outlook Express Rules and MailWasher, I had been
keeping the spam down rather well until yesterday, when I received
777 spams (in 23 hours) mostly fake patches with viruses with a size of
148 KB or higher. Coming in at the rate of 1 every 2 minutes
constantly, no letup during US East Coast daytime hours.

For those on MSN the rather aggressive filtering option will cut
off this flurry of SPAM , but it will also filter out your newsletters and
group email not addressed to you, so you will have to identify
them so they will not get filtered. The less aggressive option about
filtering obvious email does nothing.

For MSN only but I imagine most ISPs have something similar:
http://www.msn.com login and to "hotmail" (yes, even though it
is MSN that is where you look), under options:
Junk Mail Filter,
[x] Enhanced (most junk is caught),
[x] Deliver to Junk Email folder at MSN (stays there) for examination, for
a period of time or space used, which was about two hours in this
situation. Meaning I would not likely see anything legitimate there
because it would already have been deleted from the junk folder.

After this filter was on (midnight) the next 60 minutes 31 emails were trapped
at MSN, and 1 trivial spam came through and was trapped in my own filters
in this case by Mail Washer though it would have been filtered by my
Outlook Express Message Rules anyway. Thirteen hours later only five
additional trivial spams got past the MSN filtering. But three hours ago
I got a phone call asking if I'd changed my email address. So I will have
to put mailing lists into the exceptions. Which is bad because you
usually don't know what they are until you start receiving them.

I use my email address in the newsgroups, and I don't know of
anyone with a two year old personal email address that does
not get spam whether they are in newsgroups or not, even if
they don't use it, they get found.

My notes on Outlook Express are at
http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/oe6.htm

HTH,
David McRitchie, Microsoft MVP - Excel [site changed Nov. 2001]
My Excel Pages: http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/excel.htm
Search Page: http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/search.htm

"Ron de Bruin" wrote in message ...
If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

FYI,

I use a web hosting company (www.m6.net). This let's me host a few domains
at reasonable rates. A side effect is that I have unlimited email addresses
on any of my domains, including the subdomain I use for my personal stuff.

The good thing from a spam perspective is that m6 use SmarterMail to let
users manage their mail server. This let's me add spam filtering rules at
the server. I have found this to be a good option for me because the spam
gets deleted before it ever reaches my ISP. After all, I only have a 1Gb per
month download limit.

I am not pushing m6, but you might ask your ISP to look at software like
SmarterMail that lets users configue their own mail server.

Another trick I use to minimise spam is to hide the email address on my web
pages from web bots. There are a number of sites that ASCII encode an email
address so that it is displayed on screen, but hidden from bots.
http://www.mways.co.uk/prog/hidemail.php
http://mail.rochester.edu/~jr007j/emailencoder/

I do still get spam, but it runs at two to three messages per day, and my
address has been around for a while. Hope this helps.

--
Ed Ferrero
http://edferrero.m6.net

RD,

not the dunking in the river.
More like 20,000 leagues under the sea.

When Ron mentioned his 55 while getting a cup of coffee
he forgot to mention that it was instant coffee and the water
was already preheated.

Of all the spams I've ever received, this one has to be the most
persistent and annoying. It is the first one that I know of that's
gotten this much attention in the ng's (there are similar threads).

Unless something can be done about it or it runs it's course, it'll
eventually change the way we post and reply in the ng's (and
that's unfortunate).

I want to keep my e-mail address and I want to be able post
to the ng's without having to alter it but I may not have a choice
if this keeps up for much longer.

I pray that whomever started this assault winds up impaled on
a wrought iron picket fence somewhere but I doubt that my
prayers will be answered. To the contrary, whomever started this
has succeeded and I'm sure that further onslaughts will
undoubtedly ensue.

John







"RagDyer" wrote in message
...
Thanks guys for letting me know what I'm in for.

I guess I've just been baptized with the trickle of water on the head ...
not the dunking in the river.
(yet to come ?!?)
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------

"Ron de Bruin" wrote in message
...
If I take one cup of coffee and come back I have 52 of them Keng

Not this is notg butsh....t

--
Regards Ron de Bruin
(Win XP Pro SP-1 XL2002 SP-2)
www.rondebruin.nl



"Ken Wright" wrote in message
...
LOL - Some of the folks in here have had them running into the
thousands,
literally!! - they would
have happy with just 52. :-)

--
Regards
Ken....................... Microsoft MVP - Excel
Sys Spec - Win XP Pro / XL2K & XLXP


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
Attitude - A little thing that makes a BIG difference

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--



"RagDyer" wrote in message
...
Just a Heads-Up !

Saw a post here, a day or so ago about someone complaining about
getting
a
virus from Microsoft because, he thought, he posted to these groups.

This morning, I received 52 ... YES, I said 52 ... e-mails labeled in
some
fashion or other, as originating from MS, offering patches and updates
or
notification of delivery failures of various e-mails !

I guess this has a lot to say about *not* using your true address here
!
(I don't know why they didn't honor my footnote ?) vbFg
--

Regards,

RD
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please keep all correspondence within the Group, so all may benefit !
--------------------------------------------------------------------





---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.520 / Virus Database: 318 - Release Date: 18/09/2003

"David McRitchie" wrote in message
...
snip

I use my email address in the newsgroups, and I don't know of
anyone with a two year old personal email address that does
not get spam whether they are in newsgroups or not, even if
they don't use it, they get found.

A somewhat fatalistic approach, but my experience is exactly in line with
that.

I have recently implemented putting my main email address as rubbish but
including a reply address that is real. The theory is that spammers do not
look further than the rubbish main email address, but the reply address
works ok.

I don't know whether to believe this (which is why I put a spam trap in my
reply address) but I pass it on in case it helps anyone.

Geoff