CardCafe Blog

In my email I often see subject lines like this:
“Fw: Fw: HUGE VIRUS COMING !!!”
And those messages are usually from my Mother In Law.

I open them up, and the message is something like:

> HUGE VIRUS COMING !!!
>
> PLEASE READ & FORWARD !!!
> http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/postcard.asp
>
> Hi All, I checked with Norton Anti-Virus, and
>
> they are gearing up for this virus! I checked
>
> Snopes (URL above:), and it is for real! Get
>
> this e-mail message sent around to your contacts
>
> ASAP.
>
> PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING
>
> AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND
>
> CONTACTS!
>
>
>
> You should be alert during the next few days. Do not open any
> message with an attachment entitled ‘POSTCARD FROM HALLMARK,’ regardless of
> who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens A POSTCARD IMAGE, which
> ‘burns’ the whole hard disc C of your computer. This virus will be received
> from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is
> the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts. It is
> better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open
> it.
>
> If you receive a mail called’ POSTCARD,’ even though sent to
> you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately. This
> is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as
> the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee
> yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus
> simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital
> information is kept.
>
>
> COPY THIS E-MAIL, AND SEND IT TO YOUR FRIENDS. REMEMBER: IF
> YOU SEND IT TO THEM, YOU WILL BENEFIT ALL OF US!
>

She likes to keep me informed.

The reality is, messages like this, while overhyped, are not a hoax! Many bad computer programs (virus, worms, trojans, and other malware) are distributed through e-cards or virtual  greeting cards.

Of course the way to avoid all that is to send a REAL greeting card. Like at CardCafe.com where you can send a real physical greeting card that gets put in the mail the day after you order it, and looks like it was stuck in the envelope by you.

People prefer receiving the real thing more than the virtual equivilent – and they appreciate not being put at risk for a computer virus.

Keep in touch!

-Steve

Tags: e-card, ecard, email, greeting card, hoax, malware, mother in law, postcard, snopes.com, trojan, virus, worm