ID: Q187243
The information in this article applies to:
This article answers some of the more frequently asked questions concerning Word macro viruses.
1. Q. What are Word macro viruses?
A. Macro viruses are computer viruses that use an application's own
macro programming language to distribute themselves. These macros
have the potential to inflict damage to the document or to other
computer software. These macro viruses can infect Word files, as
well as any other application that uses a programming language.
Unlike previous viruses, macro viruses do not infect programs; they
infect documents and templates. Opening a document or template that
contains a macro virus will infect your system and the virus will
spread to other documents and templates you may have on your system.
Some macro viruses are not harmful, but they can be annoying.
However, there are some macro viruses that can be very destructive.
Also, Word macro viruses can be spread across platforms; for
example, the macro virus can infect files on the Windows platform,
as well as files on the Macintosh platform.
2. Q. How can I determine whether I have a Word macro virus?
A. It is not always easy to determine whether you have a macro virus.
If you are familiar with the Word macros you have on your system,
you can look through the various macros for ones that you do not
recognize. It is possible that one, or more, of them are part of a
macro virus that has infected your system. Some examples of these
type of macro names are: AAAZAO, AAAZFS, AutoOpen, FileSaveAs, and
PayLoad.
Some other things to look for are:
- Unexplainable behavior on your system; for example, you may be
prompted for a password on a file that you know does not contain a
password or your document may be unexpectedly saved as a template.
- Unusual error messages, for example:
This one's for you, Bosco.
-or-
ROBERTA TI AMO!
-or-
Just to prove another point.
-or-
And finally I would like to say: STOP ALL FRENCH NUCLEAR
TESTING IN THE PACIFIC!
- Unusual changes to your documents; for example, the macro virus
may randomly move three words then insert the word "WAZZU" at
random locations.
3. Q. How did I get the macro virus?
A. You worked with a file that was infected with a Word macro virus. An
infected file can be obtained any of the following sources
disks
networks
email attachments
modems
the Internet
You may want to obtain a current macro virus detection program to
prevent obtaining future macro viruses and to get rid of your
existing macro viruses.
4. Q. If I have a Word macro virus on my system, can I accidentally spread
the macro virus to others?
A. Yes. You can spread a virus if you share files with others. A macro
virus embeds itself into your file and can, most commonly, spread to
others if you share files from a disk, network drive, external drive
media, or any of a number of other file transfer methods. Files
exchanged over the Internet can also spread the macro virus to
others.
5. Q. Can I get software that will prevent me from getting a Word macro
virus in the future?
A. Microsoft Technical Support recommends that you use a third-party
company that provides Word macro virus detection and protection.
There are many companies that provide this service, as listed in the
following Microsoft Knowledge Base article:
ARTICLE-ID: Q49500
TITLE : List of Anti-Virus Software Vendors
6. Q. Are there other ways that I can get a Word macro virus off my
system?
A. Yes, there are some temporary workarounds that you can use to clean
a macro virus off your system. These methods will not prevent the
future infection of your system. Please refer to the following
Microsoft Knowledge Base article:
ARTICLE-ID: Q134727
TITLE : WD: What to Do If You Have a Macro Virus
7. Q. I have Word and it always prompts me about the file I am opening
containing macros. I don't share files or disks with others, I don't
even download files from the Internet. Can I prevent Word from
prompting me all the time with this warning?
A. Yes, you can disable the macro virus warning, although Microsoft
does not recommend it. To disable the macro virus warning:
a) On the Tools menu, click Options (Windows) or Preferences
(Macintosh)
b) Click the General tab.
c) Click to clear the "Macro virus protection" check box.
d) Click OK.
This macro virus warning will not appear anymore.
8. Q. Word provides the macro virus warning when I open files that may
contain macros, except when I open files from my templates folder.
Why the difference?
A. Word assumes that you know which files you have saved to your
templates folder. It also assumes that you know these files are
safe. With this assumption, Word does not provide the macro virus
warning when it detects macros contained in files from your template
folders. The template folders that Word uses are defined by the User
Templates and Workgroup Templates settings as specified in the File
Locations tab in the Options dialog box.
9. Q. My version of Word doesn't have the built-in macro virus warning
feature. Does Microsoft provide a tool that will give me that
functionality?
A. For Microsoft Word versions prior to Word 7.0a, Microsoft provides
the ScanProt tool for the following versions of Word:
- Microsoft Word for Windows 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0c
- Microsoft Word for Windows 95, version 7.0
- Microsoft Word for Windows NT, version 6.0
- Microsoft Word for the Macintosh, versions 6.0, 6.0.1, 6.0.1a
The Microsoft Virus Protection Tool (ScanProt) scans only for the
Concept virus and will remove it from your system. It does not
detect nor remove other macro viruses from your system. However, it
does install its own macros to warn you when you are opening a file
that contains macros.
For information on obtaining the Word ScanProt tool, please refer to
the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles:
ARTICLE-ID: Q134728
TITLE : WD: "Macro Virus Protection Tool" (Windows)
ARTICLE-ID: Q133895
TITLE : WD6X: Macro Virus Protection Tool for the Macintosh
(MW1222)
Please note that Microsoft does not provide a ScanProt tool for Word
versions earlier than Word 6.0. For complete macro virus protection
for these versions of Word, please contact a third-party Virus
protection software vendor.
10. Q. Are there macro viruses that affect other Microsoft Office
applications?
A. Yes. For more information on macro viruses for the other Microsoft
Office applications:
- For Microsoft Excel, please refer to the following Microsoft
Knowledge Base article:
ARTICLE-ID: Q154131
TITLE : XL: Q&A about Excel Macro/Laroux Macro Virus
or see the Microsoft Excel World Wide Web Site:
http://www.microsoft.com/excel/productinfo/vbavirus/emvolc.htm
Keywords : kbdta kbvirus winword word6 word7 word95 macword6 word
Version : MACINTOSH:6.0,6.0.1,6.0.1a; WINDOWS:6.0,6.0a,6.0c,7.0,7.0a; winnt:6.0
Platform : MACINTOSH WINDOWS winnt
Issue type : kbinfoLast Reviewed: June 1, 1999