From: ab411@detroit.freenet.org (David R. Conrad)
Date: Wed, 9 Aug 95 05:37:43 PDT
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Dir.Byway Virus (NewsClip)
Message-ID: <199508091237.IAA14167@detroit.freenet.org>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain




>    Subject: Dir.Byway Virus (NewsClip)
>    From: anonymous-remailer@shell.portal.com (unknown)
>    To: cypherpunks@toad.com
         ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ You misspelled VIRUS-L@lehigh.edu
    
>    Burlington, Mass. Aug. 7 -- A new, hazardous computer virus is

A news story, with all *that* entails.

>    virus, dubbed "Dir.Byway," is described as a super-fast,
>    polymorphic infector affecting desktops, notebooks, and even 
>    computer networks.

So it's a polymorphic fast infector that attacks EXE and COM files.
So what's new?  File infectors are never as successful as boot sector
infectors, anyhow.

>    Dir.Byway triggers if the current DOS date is set to the year
>    1996 or above, and the day of the month is equal to the
>    month's number multiplied by two and two is added, like in
>    01-14-96 or 12-26-96.

The first date should obviously be 01-04-96, based on the description
given.  Do you trust someone who can't multiply and add to correctly
report on something technical, like computer viruses?

--
David R. Conrad, ab411@detroit.freenet.org, http://web.grfn.org/~conrad/
Finger conrad@grfn.org for PGP 2.6 public key; it's also on my home page
Key fingerprint =  33 12 BC 77 48 81 99 A5  D8 9C 43 16 3C 37 0B 50
No, his mind is not for rent to any god or government.