But we were faced with the questions of how did our computer become infected and had we been responsible for transmitting this virus to other computers. Once our computer was infected, disks we shared with other users then infected their computers. We notified these contacts and recommended appropriate post-exposure strategies. By February 1996, The US Department of Energy, Computer Incident Advisory Capability, reported that Word macro viruses were no longer an isolated threat but that they were a significant hazard to the information on a computer. They indicated in their risk assessment that vulnerability of systems to this type of virus is high because most computer users are not in the habit of scanning documents.
Documents are much more mobile than executable files, passing from machine to machine.
Word macro viruses replicate themselves by infecting the normal template so that when any new document is created the new documents have the virus. Yes, if you're a computer user, you are at risk and should practice appropriate prevention and control. We recommend these infection control guidelines for computer users. Install a virus detection software program and use it regularly. Back up your computer on a regular basis.