[Linux-aus] A Current Affair Report on MyDoom Tonight

[Leon Brooks]

On Wed, 4 Feb 2004 05:37, Robi Karp wrote:
> There is simply no one, with enough presense,

...or spellcheckers... (-:

> representing Open Source AS A WHOLE to call upon for comment.

> That's why we need a media office.  Now.

I'd think having a "Media" link to a separate page on LA would be a good 
start, with an email link, a handful of small in-a-nutshell pages - 
"What is Linux?" "What is Open Source?" "Who are Linux Australia?" - 
and a list of press releases would be good.

Let's have a whack at a MyDoom release:

2004-02-04  LINUX AUSTRALIA CONDEMNS VIRUS-FOR-PROFIT

Linux Australia today denounced the actions of "Andy", the author of the 
MyDoom virus which purportedly attacked the websites of two prominent 
IT companies.

"The virus appears to have been written with a commercial motive, in 
particular to provide more relays for spam (internet junk mail) and 
remote controlled 'zombies' which steal passwords as you type them and 
wait quietly for instructions from their new [[overlords^W]]masters," 
said Linux Australia [[SpokesGeek, Zaphod Beeblebrox]].

"That the author and sponsor were prepared to interrupt and degrade the 
lives of millions of people for profit is reprehensible enough by 
itself, but to target a pointless attack on two companies which have a 
history of themselves attacking and undermining the efforts of the 
vigorously constructive and productive Open Source community really 
does add insult to injury.

"Those companies can now show justification, however tenuous, for taking 
the spotlight off their own criminal activities and using it to create 
a new, nonexistent 'hacker threat' which they must restrict your rights 
in order to combat.

"The reality is that every such restriction destroys the Internet a 
little bit. Creative projects such as WikiPedia do not work if you 
place a toll-gate or a membership barrier before them.

"In launching these attacks, and in choking people's inboxes with 
unwanted and annoying filth, the greedy spammers are inviting a 
reaction from some of the more avaricious and controlling corporations 
which will poison the waterhole for us all.

"There are now over 85,000 known Microsoft-related viruses and a handful 
for everyone else (none of them effective against any current Linux 
system). A new one isn't going to prove any point, it's not going to 
make a hero of the author, it's just going to be one more pebble 
building towards an avalanche of negative reaction.

"If we have any word for the creator of MyDoom, it's 'please don't ever 
do anything like this again'. If you want to be creative, be 
constructively creative. Join is in building up the on-line world, not 
tearing it down."

Cheers; Leon

-- 
http://cyberknights.com.au/     Modern tools; traditional dedication
http://plug.linux.org.au/       Committee Member, Perth Linux User Group
http://slpwa.asn.au/            Committee Member, Linux Professionals WA
http://linux.org.au/            Past Committee Member, Linux Australia