All I have been informed by the owner of the email address DMCVIN6683 the the virus recently received under his address most certainly did not come from his personal computer. He's a MAC user. It most likely came from a Windows Outlook user who has the address in their address book or in a saved note somewhere, along with the addresses of the recipients. Most viruses these days propagate themselves by looking for email address lists. They then grab the list, take an address from it, use that in the From: field and then send themselves out to everyone else in the address list. The name you see in the From: field is most likely NOT the real source of the virus. The DML is a sizeable community - nearly 1600 subscribers. Yahoo Groups screens viruses and attachments from any incoming posts before moderators even see them, so mail from the list *should* be safe. However if you ever get a note from the list with an attachment delete it immediately - don't even open it. Other ways you can protect yourself from viruses include: Keep your Windows PC at the latest service pack levels. You can have your PC checked by Microsoft by clicking on the Tools =-> Windows Update menu item in Internet Explorer and following the instructions. You can also configure certain versions of Windows to check automatically for service updates whenever you are attached to the web. It's free to all valid Windows license holders. Get a virus scanner. There are lots to choose from, including McAfee and Symantec. Keep your virus definition file up to date - subscribe for updates if you can. The better scanners will check incoming email in addition to saved files. Get a firewall - same sources. Don't use Outlook or Outlook Express. If you must use Outlook, find out if your ISP provides access to your email from a browser. If so, use that to pre-screen your mail before downloading it with Outlook. Be wary of email subject lines that are vague or in all caps. Use accurate subject lines when sending email. Manage your address lists. Keep them as short as possible to avoid proliferating a virus should you get one. Don't open any unexpected attachments of any kind. Just because the file says .jpg doesn't mean it's a picture. If you have any doubt, send a note back to the sender and ask if they meant to send you anything. It takes a little longer, but it's much easier than cleaning up after a virus. -- Mike Griese - Moderator of the Week To address comments privately to the moderating team, please address: moderators@xxxxxxxxxxx For more info on the list, tech articles, cars for sale see www.dmcnews.com To search the archives or view files, log in at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dmcnews Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dmcnews/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: dmcnews-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/