The virus-bearing greeting card spam is still a prominent threat; we’ve been seeing messages about this on the GT computer support staff mailing lists, and the problem is getting media coverage as well:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2007/07/notsofriendly_greeting_cards_1.html

Virus greeting cards can appear to have been sent by real people, perhaps even someone you know. For the moment, the best way to handle any electronic greeting cards you may receive is to delete them without opening them.

The virus payload is delivered when a user clicks on one of the links in the greeting card, so if you have accidentally opened a suspicious card, it’s still safe to delete it, as long as you have not followed its links.

If you suspect you may have accidentally clicked through a suspicious link, please contact LCC Support immediately - this virus carries a payload that’s a serious threat to the security of your computer and the network.

Some of our department’s faculty have started seeing a ramp-up in E-Card spam messages. These have been around for a while, but the latest batch of Fourth-of-July-themed messages may have prompted more Internet users to click on the bogus cards and infect themselves with viruses, causing an increase in virus traffic.

Georgia Tech does run virus scans on all @lcc.gatech.edu emails, removing viral attachments before they get to your desk. However, some virus spam, like the E-Cards trick, tries to get you to click on links in the email (rather than get you to open attachments), which take you to websites that automatically try to use Internet Explorer security flaws to run code on your computer. It’s the website at the other end of the link that is the dangerous component in this attack.

LCC Support recommends using Firefox, which currently has fewer unpatched security flaws than Internet Explorer.

As always, please be careful not to click on links in emails that you are unsure about. Be doubly cautious when checking mail from providers other than Georgia Tech, including Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, and your home ISP. If you start noticing an increase in spam and virus emails, send a request in to the support system. We can help you minimize the spam and ensure that viruses don’t hit your PC.