Introduction

Everyone has a connection to the Internet these days it seems. In fact, here is living proof: an e-mail from your grandfather has arrived in your mailbox, bearing the rather unsubtle title "Fwd: Re: VIRUS ALERT!!!". Grandpa is getting all worked up again about another virus he heard about and wants to warn everyone he knows.

Another e-mail you received has the title of "For Your Eyes Only". It's from your friend Maggie, who seems to spend just about all her time on-line. When you open it, it just contains the cryptic message, "Welcome to my world." It has an attachment, called welcome.exe. You open it....

Nothing happens. Oh well. You go about your business, read more e-mail, go get a snack. You get e-mail from a guy you talked to once about six months ago. Just someone you met on the net, not even from your school. "Hey, I don't know if you know it or not, but you just sent me a virus. My anti-virus software flagged your message." You didn't e-mail him, though. You didn't even remember this person until just now. So where did the e-mail come from?

You were most likely nailed by an e-mail virus, a type of malicious code. Malicious code is any computer program that causes damage, wastes resources intentionally, or otherwise disrupts your use of your computer. Malicious code comes in many forms: viruses, worms, Trojan horses, macro viruses, e-mail viruses. Who would be so obnoxious as the write stuff like this? Just to cause people trouble?

In this WebQuest, you're going to find out.