Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!uwm.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!polyslo!vlsi3b15!vax1.cc.lehigh.edu!sei.cmu.edu!krvw From: WHMurray@DOCKMASTER.ARPA Newsgroups: comp.virus Subject: Anti-virus Virus Message-ID: <0013.8909281133.AA14331@ge.sei.cmu.edu> Date: 28 Sep 89 00:13:00 GMT Sender: Virus Discussion ListLines: 42 Approved: krvw@sei.cmu.edu Chris Poet invites comment on the idea of an anti-virus virus. Chris you are correct. The idea is not original and has been discussed here ad nauseum. The consensus appears to be that it is not a good idea. Certain behavior is reprehensible regardless of its motive or intention. One such class of behavior is misrepresentation. Nice people do not resort to lies, regardless of motive. A subset of misrepresentation is stealth. Nice people do not intrude unannounced and univited. Good intentions in such cases rarely excuse the behavior. Finally, some behavior is so potentially dangerous that it cannot be justified by good intentions. Spreading any kind of computer code by automatic replication is dangerous and not justified by the intent or value of the code so distributed. Nor is it justified by any superiority of this method of distribution over any other. The decision to employ protection is a personal one. Open distribution by overt channels is preferred. I am glad that you sought advice before embarking on this ill-advised scheme. Having sought it and received it, I hope that you will heed it. [Ed. I agree with Dr. Murray in that this topic has been discussed here ad nauseum - the general concensus of which is that it is not a good idea. Unless anyone has anything significant to add to the conversation, let's please consider this topic closed. Ok? Please? :-)] ____________________________________________________________________ William Hugh Murray 216-861-5000 Fellow, 203-966-4769 Information System Security 203-964-7348 (CELLULAR) ARPA: WHMurray@DOCKMASTER Ernst & Young MCI-Mail: 315-8580 2000 National City Center TELEX: 6503158580 Cleveland, Ohio 44114 FAX: 203-966-8612 Compu-Serve: 75126,1722 INET: WH.MURRAY/EWINET.USA 21 Locust Avenue, Suite 2D DASnet: [DCM1WM]WMURRAY New Canaan, Connecticut 06840 PRODIGY: DXBM57A ---------------------------------------------------------------------