More than 100 machines at the Lab were infected in one day this month by a new Windows-targeted virus called “Netsky.Y.”

PLEASE NOTE: If you receive a suspicious message with an attachment, above all do not open the attachment – just delete the email immediately. Since many of these viruses will forge “to” and “from” addresses, don't open an attachment just because you recognize the sender. It is only safe to open an attachment when you are expecting it from a specific user.

All Laboratory computer users should have registered their systems and patched any vulnerabilities by the April 15th deadline. But the only way to ensure that a system remains safe is by periodically scanning it for vulnerabilities and misconfigurations. To do so, go to https://nets.lbl.gov, or contact your system administrator if you need more help.

For information on system security, go to the Computer Protection Program web site here.

General information on virus handling and prevention can be found here.

Windows 2000 and XP users can download a tool that identifies common security misconfigurations by performing a local or remote scan. The Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA) can be found here.