in case nobody else noticed it, there was a mail worm released today

Wed Jan 28 19:26:30 UTC 2004

At 07:17 AM 1/28/2004 -0800, Scott Francis wrote:
>I've been wondering lately, after about 10 years of email worms spreading in
>exactly the same manner with every incarnation ... why do you think people
>haven't learned not to open unexpected attachments yet? It would seem to me
>that even the most clueless user would modify his/her behavior after, say,
>the 25th time they've been infected and had to 1) call tech support or 2)
>reinstall their OS (or more likely, have someone else reinstall their OS).

Several reasons,

1) in each of those 10 years there is one more years worth of human beings 
for whom this is their first email virus and they have no idea what it is 
they are clicking on.

2) some people's job legitimately involves getting lots of mail attachment 
and just as people reflexively click on the "Are you sure you want to do 
X?  Yes, No" messages, these people reflexively open every attachment they get.

3) some people believe everything they read and will always fall for the 
"here is the response you requested" line du jour, just like there are 
people who believe that Elvis isn't dead but is living in an East Texas 
rest home (see www.bubbahotep.com :-)

4) some people never learn :-(

face it, the following quote has always been true and will always be true

"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build 
bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce 
bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."
          Rich Cook.

jon bennett