E-Mail and Virus Hoaxes

E-mail hoaxes have become common and it can be difficult to know if an e-mail is legitimate. To help with this, a useful web site on Identifying Hoaxes and Urban Legends has been published by the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT). It explains many of the most common types of hoaxes.

According to US-CERT, hoaxes attempt to trick or defraud users. A hoax could be malicious, instructing users to delete a file necessary to the operating system by claiming it is a virus. It could also be a scam that convinces users to send money or personal information. Chain letters are familiar to anyone with an email account whether they are sent by strangers or well-intentioned friends or family members. Try to verify the information before following any instructions or passing the message along.

The following websites list and discuss various email and virus hoaxes. They may help you identify hoaxes.

F-Secure - Hoax Warnings

http://www.f-secure.com/hoaxes/hoax_index.shtml

Hoaxbusters - Full Hoax Index

http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/HBHoaxIndex.html

McAfee.com - Virus Hoax Listing

http://vil.mcafee.com/hoax.asp

Symantec - List of Hoaxes

http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/hoax.html

Trend Micro - Scams and Hoaxes

http://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/hoaxes/default.asp

Site has a Top 10 List, a full list of hoaxes, and a search function.

United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) - Home Page

http://www.uscert.gov

US-CERT - Cyber Security Tips

http://www.uscert.gov/cas/tips/

US-CERT - Identifying Hoaxes and Urban Legends

http://www.uscert.gov/cas/tips/ST04-009.html