At first, LoveLetter seemed like just another cutesy computer virus that spreads extremely quickly by automatically sending itself to e-mail addresses contained in the infected user's address book. Melissa was the first virus to replicate itself in this manner, and like most of the viruses that have emerged since, it really can't do a great deal of harm to the infected user's computer.
LoveLetter has actually proven to be a different beast entirely, and some of its variants are even more crafty and dangerous than the original (see our accompanying news feature for more information on LoveLetter and its many variants). These viruses pack a punch strong enough to completely disable your computer, and for this reason LoveLetter is no joke (no pun intended of course).
Thankfully, the major virus scanner vendors have been quick to release virus definition updates that detect and remove LoveLetter and most or all of its variants. Even better, a freeware utility is now available that has been specifically designed to ferret out and eliminate LoveLetter.
