This is not a hoax, this is the real thing. For a description of its overall impact so far, see ZDNet Tech News: http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2233030,00.html For a technical description of the WM97/Melissa virus, please see Anti-Virus Emergency Response Team at Network Associates: http://www.avertlabs.com/public/datafiles/valerts/vinfo/melissa.asp W97M/Melissa is a Word 97 Macro virus which was discovered Friday, March 26, 1999 and has been spreading extremely rapidly. It arrives as part of an Microsoft Word document attached to an e-mail message very likely FROM SOMEONE YOU KNOW and is activated when you open the document. The message has been described as follows. The subject line looks like: Subject: Important Message From <name of sender> It may also read something like: "Don't open this at work" The message contains this line: "Here is that document you asked for ... don't show anyone else ;-)" Due to the way this virus works, the sender will most likely be someone you know. Their infected system is attaching the infected MS Word file and sending it on to you without their knowledge. Do not open any attached Word document, EVEN IF IT'S FROM SOMEONE YOU KNOW, without virus-checking it with an uptodate virus checker. If you open an infected document containing this virus, it will corrupt local MS Word setup files, infect subsequently opened Word documents, and, if you use Microsoft Outlook, will cause your computer to pass on the attached document to the top 50 addresses listed in your e-mail address book, all without your knowledge. (Note that it originally got started with document called LIST.DOC, a list of passwords to hardcore porn sites.) General rules of safe computing: 1) Keep your anti-virus software uptodate. Your anti-virus software can be updated via downloads from the vendor's Web site. 2) DO NOT open any attached Word documents, regardless of source, without virus-checking them first. -- Patricia Manson Dover listmanager http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/Dover Alabama listmanager http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/Sponsor/AlabamaList My Home page http://www.myfreeoffice.com/treeshaker/