By Greeks or by geeks, beware of Trojan horses.
In the hands of ancient Greeks, the mythical Trojan Horse was a powerful weapon used to covertly overcome the barriers surrounding the city of Troy. An adaptation of the Trojan Horse is an equally potent weapon in the hands of modern day geeks who use technology to circumvent security measures on the Internet.
An electronic Trojan horse attack on an unprotected or even under-protected computer can have many unpleasant ramifications including the loss of files. Perhaps even worse, a Trojan horse virus can turn unsuspecting victims into purveyors of e-mail’s worst enemy, spam — and we’re not talking about the processed canned meat. Even the simplest click on the information superhighway can create vulnerability for computer users. Accidentally open an attachment infected with a Trojan Horse and your computer email account could begin sending spam to tens of thousands of addresses before you’re even aware that you’ve been hacked.
More annoying, and certainly more costly than a dinner-time telemarketing call, spam reportedly costs American businesses nearly $10 billion a year in lost productivity. Marketing everything from home mortgages and business opportunities to prescriptions and pornography, rampant spam accounts for nearly 40 percent of all email correspondence. Preying on the lonely and vulnerable with promises of a "secret crush" or instant weight loss (which somehow miraculously occurs while eating pizza and watching TV) is a miserable way to earn a buck. But, we reserve the bulk of our contempt for the despicable purveyors of porn who brazenly invade email with graphic and offensive images. It’s one thing to provide a service to those in the market for this type of product, but entirely another when it’s launched without warning.
Unfortunately computer users can’t easily rid themselves of the pesky messages. When it comes to hacking and computer-related shenanigans, the bad guys always seem to be one step ahead. Attempts to block certain words or phrases are quickly circumvented by a change in spelling or the addition of a character.
In spite of the enormous challenges and an intensely competitive environment, the nations top three email service providers, AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo, Inc. are working on a collaborative assault on junk e-mail. Coupled with stronger laws and stricter penalties, they just might have a shot at winning this war.
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