On Friday 13 August 2004 03:57, Malke Routh wrote:
On Thu, 2004-08-12 at 16:17, Anders Johansson wrote:
On Thursday 12 August 2004 21:03, Malke Routh wrote:
On Thu, 2004-08-12 at 11:43, James Hatridge wrote:
Hi all...
My wife got a M$ dat file in an email. Can someone tell me how to open it? Thanks, JIM -- Jim Hatridge
*.dat files can come from lots of different applications. They are not meant to be opened.
huh?
In Windows, .dat files are just that - data files that belong to various programs.
Yeah, and data files should never be opened?
Very often - in Windows - .dat files are associated with spyware and other malware. You didn't specify whether your wife got this on a Windows or Linux machine.
My?
Certainly there's nothing to worry about on Linux. In Windows that is another story.
Either contact the person who sent the email and ask them what they were doing or just delete it. If you wife is using a Windows operating system, she should definitely delete it.
Sillyness based on ignorance.
Thank you for the nice comment.
I'm sorry but that is what it is. Files sitting on your file system can do no harm to anyone. Suggesting they shouldn't be opened until you know what it is is good advise. Suggesting they be deleted before you know what it is is ignorant silliness, right up there with "delete all mail from people you don't know and don't read them". Yes, I've seen that advise from "experts"
Not silliness, not based on ignorance. Based on that supporting Windows systems is what I do, with a specialty in cleaning up infected PC's. At which I am quite expert and actually know what I'm talking about.
winmail.dat ring a bell?
Again, if your wife has a Linux system there is nothing to worry about. If she has a Windows system and is running with default settings, she has no idea what that file is. Many Windows users get mysterious emails with .dat files as attachments. They are usually viral, malware at the very least.
One shouldn't *run* attached exe files
There are many other extensions besides *.exe files that are actually executables in Windows.
which is why I didn't say .exe, just exe as short for executables
, or blindly click on them in case they are concealed executables, but just deleting them on some "eeek, it's on my system, I've been infected" reasoning is just silly. Like you said, a dat file can be anything, including a valid email from an outlook user. Finding out what it is is the first step
Yes, finding out what it is - as I suggested
You suggested deleting it without thinking. Your exact words were "if you wife is using a windows system, she should definitely delete it"
- is a good idea - *if* you can contact the person who sent it; i.e., the sender is someone you know. However, in Windows, .dat files are usually nothing you would normally send to anyone.
Sadly, this is completely wrong. Just about every outlook user sends these .dat files all the time. Those TNEF files are encoded mail with the same idea as html mail, in that outlook tries to preserve things like layout.