“An anonymous virus writer… has created a virus — actually a
self-replicating worm — that can spread itself through a user’s
Microsoft… Outlook or Outlook Express client.”
“The worm, called ‘BubbleBoy’ in an apparent reference to a
‘Seinfeld’ episode, is unlike anything that anti-virus software
vendors have seen to this point. … It doesn’t rely on an
attachment. Instead, all a user has to do is open an
e-mail. An embedded Visual Basic Script command attaches itself to
the Outlook address book and mails the e-mail to everyone
in the address list. … Simply using the preview function of
Outlook Express will allow the worm to replicate.”
“BubbleBoy is considered low risk by most anti-virus software
vendors… because it hasn’t been reported by any customers.
…[and] doesn’t carry with it any code that could damage someone’s
computer. … [But] Anti-virus vendors worry that this could be a
harbinger of some very nasty things to come.”