Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!pyrdc!pyrnj!rutgers!mit-eddie!zermelo From: zermelo@eddie.MIT.EDU (L Richard Duffy) Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc Subject: Anyone infected by "Brain" virus? Message-ID: <10111@eddie.MIT.EDU> Date: 22 Sep 88 02:31:41 GMT Reply-To: zermelo@eddie.MIT.EDU (L Richard Duffy) Organization: MIT, EE/CS Computer Facilities, Cambridge, MA Lines: 28 A friend just called me to relate a distressing story. He was reading the current (Sept. 19, I think) issue of _Time_, specifically an article about a Pakistani company called Brain Computer Services, or something similar. This company has apparently planted some viruses in pirated software which has wide circulation, apparently capable of wreaking great data devastation. Well, later that afternoon my friend noticed that the volume label on one of his floppies at work had been somehow changed to "(c) Brain", and he also found a message giving the phone number in Pakistan for this company (which I gather will decontaminate your software for a fee). The friend asked me for advice; he and his colleagues have enormous amounts of pirated stuff which they use with their extensive databases, etc. Obviously he's afraid that data might start evaporating or changing sometime soon, and wants any and all advice. Since I've never dealt with a virus myself, I thought I'd broadcast a general request for such advice, especially if any of you have experienced this particular virus. By the way, all the equipment he has is IBM PCs and clones. Please e-mail any useful information (rather than posting here). Thanks a lot. ........................................................................ Internet: zermelo@eddie.mit.edu UUCP: {ihnp4 | allegra | gatech | decvax!genrad}!mit-eddie!zermelo BITNET: zermelo%eddie@mitvma.bitnet VoiceNet: 617-253-4045 (or -6668)