"A Card for You", "Virtual Card For You", or "Postcard" Virus Warning or hoax-Fiction! & Truth!

"A Card for You"- "Virtual Card For You"-or "Postcard" Virus Warning-Fiction! & Truth!

Summary of the eRumor
The eRumor warns of a virus just discovered by Mcafee or Norton and classed by Microsoft as the most destructive ever.

It says the virus destroys "Sector Zero" from the heard disk, sends itself to all the names in your email address book, wipes out the hard disk, and has caused a panic in New York, according to CNN.

It says that the subject will be "A Card for You", "Virtual Card for You", or "Postcard." Some versions also say the subject will be "Postcard from Hallmark."

The Truth
This particular email is a hoax---although there has been a real "Postcard" virus.

The hoax has circulated continuously on the Internet since at least 2001.

There is no known virus called "A card for you" or "A virtual card for you."

In July, 2007, someone added "Postcard" to the story and said that it had been verified as a true virus.

Note: It is true that there was a virus that appeared in the summer of 2007 with a subject line of: "You've received a postcard from a family member." There were several other variations of the subject line that talked about a "card" or a "greeting card." But that virus had nothing to do with this false warning about "A card for you" or "A virtual card for you" and the warning that CNN had termed it the worst virus ever.

Microsoft, Norton, or McAfee have had nothing to say about it except that it is a hoax.

The CNN part of the eRumor was added by someone along the way.

In June, 2008, someone added that the message in the virus was "POSTCARD FROM HALLMARK," which is also untrue.

Updated 6/27/08

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

Version #1

To All,

A new virus has just been discovered that has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive ever. This virus was discovered yesterday afternoon by McAfee. This virus simply destroys Sector Zero from the hard disk where vital information for its functioning are stored.

This virus acts in the following manner: It sends itself automatically to all contacts on your list with the title: "A Card for You".

As soon as the supposed virtual card is opened the computer freezes so that the user has to reboot. When the ctrl+alt+del keys or the reset button are pressed, the virus destroys Sector Zero, thus permanently destroying the hard disk. Yesterday in just a few hours this virus caused panic in New York, according to news broadcast by CNN.

This alert was received by an employee of Microsoft itself. So don't open any mails with subject: "A Virtual Card for You." As soon as you get the mail, delete it, even if you know the sender.

Please forward this to everyone in your address book. I'm sure most people, like myself, would rather receive this notice 25 times than not at all.

CNN|

Version #2

Hi All, I checked with Norton Anti-Virus, and they are gearing up for this virus!

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