This article is intended for personal viewing only and may not be re-distributed in any form. Please e-mail link requests. Dave Butler's co-workers have so dubbed him because he inadvertently set loose a computer virus at work a couple of months ago.
Most people are aware that running a program from a questionable source is risky.
But few may be aware that simply opening certain types of e-mail documents, or even browsing particular Web pages can wreak havoc on your computer. Just ask Textron. The Providence-based conglomerate that makes everything from helicopters to garden machines suffered a virus attack on some of its PCs last month. The source was allegedly an e-mail message from a disgruntled employee who worked for a subcontractor of Textron, according to police. Textron subsequently lost some data stored over a 15-hour period because of the virus.