LOVE BUG BITES BIZ
Little did HITS' Sr. Editor Roy Trakin realize when he clicked the hyperlink in an innocent e-mail from MSO publicist Maggie Wang that he would unleash a demon virus that would disconnect him from the HITS network and crash his Napster files. Who knew Metallica would go so far to prevent fans from downloading "I Disappear"?
The virus, first noticed in Asia, infected computers around the world today, snarling communication from investment banks to Parliament and the White House. Among those whose e-mail systems shut down were Interscope, Virgin, Universal, BMI and lots more.
Unluckily for you, HITS' ace firewall prevented any damage from spreading to the overall network, insuring that hitsdailydouble.com will bow, as scheduled, on Monday (5/8).
The "love bug" first appeared in Hong Kong late yesterday afternoon (5/3), spreading through e-mail systems once a user opened one of the contaminated messages. It later moved through European parliamentary houses and the high-tech systems of big companies and financial traders.
"This affectionate greeting contains a virus which has immobilized the House's internal communication system," announced Margaret Becker, leader of Britain's House of Commons.
In Asia, Dow Jones Newswires and the Asian Wall Street Journal were among the victims. "It crashed all the computers," said Hong Kong Dow Jones spokeswoman Daphne Ghersquiere. Once the message was open, it sent the virus to other e-mail addresses within the Dow Jones computers, blocking people's ability to send and receive e-mail. Victims received dozens of contaminated e-mails.
Commented Trakin: "I saw ‘ILOVEYOU' from [email protected] and immediately clicked it open—because I always need a little love—just before I read the very next e-mail which warned me not to. Boy, do I feel stupid. Does anyone know how I can get Gnutella back on my hard drive?"
