[plug] Rewinding word documents (legal implications, longish, Jeremy please comment)

[Bill Kenworthy]

At risk of starting an offtopic thread, it is a show stopper!

My reasons:
1) if you have to pass email for your local domain (in my case two
wondows machines)
2) Your wife is on some mail lists that are essential to her work, but
are 100% html mail and we regularly get (though not for a month or so
now I think about it!) virus laden mail
3) Relatives you dont want to upset think they are doing you a favour by
using html mail and attaching the latest cute executable attached
(normally binned by the scanner)
4) shell scripts attached/embedded in email from tech lists.

This last is my personnel worry: what if I miscongure something and
accidentally execute it?, it does not have to be a virus to cause
damage!

My mail scanner (anomy) does a blanket quarntine on executable windows
binaries (and Linux too, but I need to check that) and sus files, and
"defangs" (exit statement) in shell scripts.  Just another layer of
safety perhaps, but essential none the less.  What good is a policy when
the boss has to play in dangerous waters.  Yes one can bin all html
mail, refuse all attachements etc, but some people actually have to use
their machines for productive work.

True, a new virus may find a different infection path and escape the
scanner until its updated, but there are far more old ones being passed
around than new ones!  Without a scanner, you could be guilty of passing
on these older virii by forwarding infected emal unknowingly, and if
using Linux, you may never know you have done it if its a windows virus.

BillK

On Tue, 2002-03-19 at 20:44, Anthony Jones wrote:
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> 
> BillK,
> 
> I agree that a virus scanner is part of a comprehensive security policy. It's 
> hardly a show stopper if you don't have one. A virus scanner does not provide 
> any sort of technical impediment to me writing a piece of software which 
> erases all the files on your hard disk and posting it to you in the hope that 
> you'll try to open it.
> 
> Viruses spread too quickly these days for virus scanners to be effective, 
> except to shut the stable door after the horse has bolted
> 
> Anthony