A few days after the resolution of the dramatic U.S. elecciones2000, I was hanging out at the Cybernet Cafe, checking my e-mail on my laptop when I see a 'Friend Message' sittin' in my inbox from someone I know. 'Feliz Navidad' it says. Yeah, sure. Hahaha. Very Funny. For all I know it's one of those killer resumes from that failed Qaz dot-com. Or, worse, maybe it's another ILOVEYOU virus, like I'm back at that stage of my life again where it's either all fun love or Romeo and Juliet.
Nooooo. I'm married now, in fact my wife's the youngest daughter of the Bymer family. No dynasty, thank goodness, so it's not like we worry about any swiss password stealing viruses. We make do. Still I know better than to open any e-mail that might have Shockwave attachments, even if it is the latest Pokemon or SouthPark video.
Same with any unsolicited music attachments, even if it's an old XTC or Sonic Youth MP3 downloaded from Gnutella. You gotta look out for yourself. Since it's no Chernobyl, no need to dial 911, I simply delete the message without previewing or opening it. I know there won't be any apology from the true author forthcoming any time soon so I sit back, take in the pretty park across the street and order another cold glass of Hybris ale.
All kidding aside, this has been a busy year for virus hunters. In the following pages, I'll review what we've seen in 2000 and suggest what might be ahead in 2001.
