INFORMATION BULLETIN
PROBLEM: A Trojan Horse program called AOL4FREE.COM that deletes all
files on a hard drive is circulating the Internet.
PLATFORM: DOS/Windows-based PCs
DAMAGE: When the AOL4FREE.COM program is executed, all files and
directories on the users C: drive are deleted.
SOLUTION: DO NOT execute this program. If the program starts executing,
quickly pressing Ctrl-C will save some of your files.
VULNERABILITY Users who download the trojaned AOL4FREE.COM program and
ASSESSMENT: executes it will destroy all the files and directories on their
DOS C: drive.
CIAC has obtained a Trojaned copy of AOL4FREE.COM that destroys hard drives.
NOTE: This is different from the AOL4FREE Virus Warning hoax message.
CIAC has obtained a Trojaned copy of the AOL4FREE.COM program that, if run,
deletes all the files on a user's hard drive. If you are e-mailed this file,
or if you have downloaded it from an online service, do not attempt to run it.
If the program was received as an attachment to an e-mail message, do not
double click (open) it. Opening an attached program runs that program, which
in this case deletes all the files on your hard drive. The original
AOL4FREE was a Macintosh program for fraudulently creating free AOL (America Online)
accounts. Note that any attempt to use the original AOL4FREE program may
subject you to prosecution.
NOTE: Most antivirus programs will not detect this or other Trojan Horse
programs.
Detection
=========
AOL4FREE.COM is a Trojan program that is 993 bytes (2 sectors) long.
The following text is readable in the AOL4FREE.COM file
if you display it with the DOS TYPE command or the DOS EDIT program.
Compiled by BAT2EXEC 1.5
PC Magazine . Douglas Boling
Note that this text may appear in any program compiled with the BAT2EXEC
program and has nothing to do with the Trojan Horse.
If you open the AOL4FREE.COM file with a disk editor or with the Windows
Notepad program, the following text is found at the end of the second sector
of the file.
PATH
COMMANDC earc
/C C:
/C CD\
DELTREE /y *.*
ECHOOYOUR COMPUTER HAS JUST BEEN F***ED BY *VP* F*** YOU AOL-LAMER
Where F*** is a common vulgar explicative.
Recovery
========
Pressing Ctrl-C before the Trojan Horse finishes deleting all your files will
save some of them. If the program runs to completion, all the files on
your root drive will have been deleted. The files are deleted with the
DOS DELTREE command, so the contents of the files are still on your hard
disk, only the directory entries have been deleted. Any program that can
recover deleted files will allow you to recover some or all of the files
on your hard disk.
While attempting to recover files, be sure to not write any new files onto
the hard disk as the new files may overwrite the contents of a deleted file,
making it impossible to recover. You will probably have to boot your system
with a floppy and run any recovery programs from there.
If you happen to have one of the delete tracking programs installed on your
system (a program that keeps track of deleted files in case you want them
back) the recovery operation will be relatively simple. Follow the directions
in your delete tracking program to recover your files. If not, you will
probably have to recover each file individually, supplying the first character
of the file name, which is overwritten in the directory when the file is
deleted. Most DOS/Windows disk tools programs also have the capability for
recovering deleted files so follow the directions included with those programs
to do so.
Background
==========
The original AOL4FREE Macintosh program was developed to fraudulently create free
AOL accounts. The creator of that program has pleaded guilty to defrauding
America Online for distributing that program. Anyone else attempting to use
that program to defraud AOL could also be prosecuted.
The AOL4FREE Virus Warning message has been circulating about the Internet
and warns of an AOL4FREE virus infected e-mail message that infects and
destroys a system when the message is read, but that warning is a hoax
and not about this Trojan horse.
1. The AOL4FREE.COM program is a Trojan Horse, not a virus. It does not
spread on its own.
2. A Trojan Horse must be run to do any damage.
3. Reading an e-mail message with the Trojan Horse program as an attachment
will not run the Trojan Horse and will not do any damage. Note that
opening an attached program from within an e-mail reader runs that
attached program, which may make it appear that reading the attachment
caused the damage. Users should keep in mind that any file with a .COM or
.EXE extension is a program, not a document and that double clicking or
opening that program will run it. Macintosh users have the additional
problem that Macintosh programs do not have readable extensions, and so
are more difficult to detect. Extra care should be taken to insure
that you do not unintentionally execute an attached program.
CIAC still affirms that reading an e-mail message, even one with an attached
program, can not do damage to a system. The attachment must be both downloaded
onto the system and run to do any damage.
For additional information or assistance, please contact CIAC:
Voice: +1 510-422-8193 (8:00 - 18:00 PST, 16:00 - 2:00 GMT)
Emergency (DOE, DOE Contractors, and NIH ONLY):
1-800-759-7243, 8550070 (primary),
8550074 (secondary)
FAX: +1 510-423-8002
STU-III: +1 510-423-2604
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
World Wide Web: http://ciac.llnl.gov/
Anonymous FTP: ciac.llnl.gov (128.115.19.53)
Modem access: +1 (510) 423-4753 (28.8K baud)
+1 (510) 423-3331 (28.8K baud)
This document was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an
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Government nor the University of California nor any of their
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UCRL-MI-119788
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