"All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." --Lucy Van Pelt, in Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz
Saint Valentine's Day or simply Valentine's Day , celebrated on February 14th, has become the traditional day on which lovers mutually exchange heart shaped "valentines" with the object of their love and affection. A potpourri of hearts, doves, Cupids and love notes are exchanged publicly all expressing the feeling "I love you!"
One billion valentines are exchanged each year worldwide which makes the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year second only to Christmas. The United States Greeting Card Company estimates that in the United States men spend on average twice as much money as women on valentine cards. Since the 19th century handwritten notes have largely been replaced by professionally mass-produced greeting cards.The lyrics of love and attachment are produced by machines in factories dedicated to making the day wonderful for all those who celebrate it.
Don't get me wrong. I too enjoy the exchange of cards, the taste of Hershey's chocolate, the candlelit dinner and the feelings of closeness the day inspires. It's a wonderful day in which we express our love for others and they in turn express their love and concern for us as well. It's the perfect way to stave off the blues and the blahs of February.
There is however a downside to this wonderful interchange of love notes and potions and lotions and notions. Electronic Valentine Day Cards (E cards) are also sent on this day. Many of the cards stick with the traditional exchange of love and affection. Friends and relatives and acquaintances express their feelings in writing and then instantaneously email the cards to everyone they know.
Computer hackers also take glee and delight in this tradition. Hiding behind the anonymity of the Internet they send out their own special brand of Valentine. Of course the message they send out is a far cry from the intended message of the day. Their E-cards are sent out loaded with viruses and programs meant to destroy, disrupt and perhaps disable the computers of those people who naively open them.
One person I know opened such an E card last Valentine's Day. His email stated that he had been sent an E-card from an admirer and that he merely had to open the email file, unzip the attached compressed file and then sit back and enjoy the message. He did not bother to check to see who had sent him the card..A fatal error he later discovered.
He unzipped the email attachment as instructed. The program loaded successfully on his system Then the unexpected happened. The program then took total control of his computer. The monitor screen turned blue and a message flashed across the monitor screen" Happy Valentine's Day....You've Just Been Invaded!" A happy face icon gleefully danced across the bottom of the screen.
The message disappeared and then the virus laden program proceeded to erase the contents of his hard drive, deleted his backup files and data and caused internal damage to his computer. The cost of this attack was roughly $500. Quite the price to pay for not being vigilant. He had neglected to enable his anti virus program and his Window's firewall was also disabled. A costly lesson had been learned.
This Valentine's Day before you open any email card or attachment make sure you have your anti virus programs running and up to date and that you at least isolate the attached file and examine it for viruses and other programs that could ruin not only your day but your computer as well!
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