|
|
|
Computer
Viruses and "False Authority Syndrome"
Computer repairmen
NETWORK ADMINISTRATORS
AND computer security personnel may hold some of the best job titles,
but they don't have a lock on the market when it comes to virus pseudo-experts.
The list also includes computer consultants & repairmen. In one example,
CompuServe user Rob Parker posted a message in early 1995 lamenting his
laptop's dead hard disk:
"Thinking
the problem was a virus, the tech[nician] tried a number of virus scanners,
all negative. He then tried to reformat the hard disk... He claimed that
the [hard disk] was ruined, and that a virus had done it."
In a nutshell, the repairman
used two or more programs to detect viruses on the laptop. None of these
programs found a virus. The repairman then tried to reformat the laptop
hard disk -- but the attempt failed. So he claimed a virus physically
destroyed Parker's hard disk.
Genuine experts on
CompuServe dismissed the repairman's conclusion. Parker now wonders if
the repairman made up the story. Did he feel compelled to give his customer
an important-sounding excuse for why the drive failed?
Parker got off easy:
his hard disk failed during the laptop's warranty period. But his experience
raises important questions. How many repairmen incorrectly told customers
to fork over money because they claimed "a virus physically destroyed
the computer"? How many computer users believed it?
<<PREV NEXT>>
|
|
|
