Evil UPS email...

July 22, 2008 8:22 AM

Is our computer infected by that UPS email attachement that has been flying around lately?

OK, so my wife got tricked by the malicious UPS email attachment that has been flying around.

Here's my question: She opened the ZIP file but DID NOT run the executable. Are we still OK? I'm five hundred miles away and I can't get on the computer myself. Would just opening the ZIP file launch the executable?

posted by doowop to computers & internet (3 comments total)

I don't believe so. This thread suggests the system would go haywire enough that she would notice.
posted by sharkfu at 8:36 AM on July 22

Opening the zip file would not be enough to infect her...it's the executable that is the virus, not the zip.
posted by JaredSeth at 9:36 AM on July 22

Note, if you are one of the people that runs their computer with "hide file extensions" active, you could fall prey to the trick of naming a file "something_evil.zip.exe". With extensions hidden, if you open the zip file, you're actually launching an exe. A clever black-hat will use a custom icon for the exe that just happens to be the same icon as a the default compressed-file/folder icon, making it less likely to be noticed.
posted by nomisxid at 9:44 AM on July 22