Non extractable container file of type MIME

Last week I received an e-mail with a virus and NAV detected it. There were two files in one e-mail. I quarantined the files. One had the .scr extention and the other was a temp file. It showed up in NAV as being in a temp folder. I didn't understand how it got on my hard drive so I submitted it to Symantec. This is the developer notes in the reply:

Developer notes:
C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\NAV22.tmp is a non extractable container file of type MIME

I have no idea what that means. Can someone explain?

A couple of days later, I received another e-mail with an attachment that I recognized as a virus, but NAV didn't pick it up. I did not open the file. I deleted the e-mail. I checked the Symantec site and learned that it was a new virus and new definitions were just released that day. I downloaded the new definitions and ran another scan. No virus.

I wasn't too worried about either incident until I received an e-mail from the moderator of a Yahoo group to which I belong letting me know that the group received an infected e-mail with my e-mail address. I still wasn't too worried because I had the latest virus definitions and had just run a scan. I thought someone else in the group probably had a virus and my e-mail address was spoofed.

Now I have received another e-mail from a lady telling me that she received an e-mail from me with nothing in it - just a smiley face. That was in the body of the infected e-mail that I received. The lady didn't say anything about an attachment - I hope there was no attachment! I haven't e-mailed this lady for a long time, but she is in my address book.

I can't find a sign of a virus on my machine. It was time for me to renew my NAV so I installed the new version today and it ran a scan automatically.

I have also run HouseCall and the free scanner at Computer Associates.

My machine seems o.k.

Any suggestions? If not for that second e-mail, I would have sworn there was no way I had a virus. But, now I'm not so sure. I don't know what to do if I can't find it.

Thanks.

 

Temp/Container File

Tony,

That may be how the file was handled, but I have never seen it done that way. NAV "caught" the e-mail with the virus - seems to have handled it as two. I quarantined and the .scr file and the C:\....Temp\NAV22.tmp file was in quarantine.

Anyway, I don't think I have a virus. I also ran the removal tool for all the Beagle virus variants - nothing found.

Thanks.

 

Same happened to me

I have had exactly the same thing, but I've been getting the emails every day for the past week with the two virus's in, Norton tells me its deleted one but can't delete the other so I should quarantine, which I have been doing. I sent to Norton and got the same reply as you, will it be ok to delete these from the quarantine file or will it damage my computer in some way, I'm totally lost and wish the sad person would stop sending these to me.

 

Quarantined files

You can delete the quarantined files - they are deleted from the hard drive. The only time you would want to keep files in quarantine is if it's a legitimate file that has been infected and there is a chance to repair it.

 

Quarantined

OK thanks, so any idea why Norton didn't/couldn't delete these virus's when they came in my emails, how do I know if its an important file and shouldn't be deleted for future reference please?

Thanks again for the info, you are a star

Best Regards

 

Quarantine

When files are quarantined they are encrypted and cannot harm your computer.

This article from Symantec may help you understand it better:

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/nav.nsf/docid/2001042714060406?OpenDocument&src=_sh

I am not a guru. I just have a general understanding. I guarantine and delete all the viruses that come in through e-mail. If a virus should "slip by" and infect your computer, it can corrupt your files. I think this is when you would try to repair them. If they can't be repaired, they would have to be replaced.

 

virus

OK thanks again for that I will read up on what it says. It does do my head in some what though trying to understand why people send out virus's, what do they get out of it? They don't get to 'see' the damage or annoyance etc that they cause so what's the point? I would love to actually be able to ask someone who sends them why they do it but I guess they are cowardly little spotty bespectacled impotent little men sitting in sweaty smelly dark and dank bedrooms...........well that's how I imagine them anyway

Thanks again for all your help I'm afraid I'm a bit of a dim wit when it comes to these types of things.

Best Regards
Karen