sulfnbk.exe virus warning-Fiction!

Delete SULFNBK.EXE From Your Windows Command Folder Because It’s a Virus-Fiction!

Summary of eRumor:
An email warns you that a new virus is spreading and will activate on a certain date.  Many versions also describe how the sender of the email searched his or her computer and found the file so is warning you in case the contamination was passed along.  The offending file is named sulfnbk.exe and you get instructions on how to find and delete the file both from your hard disk and from the recycle bin in Windows.
The Truth:
This is a false warning that is creating a lot of embarrassment and headaches for those who forward it to their friends.  If you follow the instructions in the eRumor, you will be deleting a valid file, not a virus.
sulfnbk.exe is a Windows system file that is almost always located in the Windows command directory.  Windows uses it to restore long file names if they become corrupted.
Fortunately, even if you did delete the file, it should not cause major problems and Windows should continue to work normally.  You will want to get the file back, however, so your Windows installation will be in complete working order.  Without the file, the handling of some filenames may be affected if they become corrupted.  We’ve received some emails from readers who feared that deleting sulfnbk.exe created major problems for their computers, but that is not likely.
The eRumor may be the result of confusion resulting from real viruses.  sulfnbk.exe is an executable file and, like other executables, can be infected by viruses.  It’s possible that whoever originated the message experienced or heard of an infection of sulfnbk.exe and issued a warning about it.  Also, there is a particular virus named W32.Magistr.24876@mm that has been known to send an infected copy of the file as an attachment.  That virus is not very widely circulated at the moment and chooses files at random to infect and send, so virus experts are saying that when you find sulfnbk.exe on your computer, it’s probably not infected.  One way to tell the difference is that the valid sulfnbk.exe is usually found in your Windows command folder.  The infected file usually arrives as an attachment to an email and is not deposited into the Command folder.
To provide the best protection for your computer, be sure you have good virus protection software and that the virus definitions for it are up to date.

If you’ve deleted the file and want to get it back
CLICK HERE
for Microsoft Instructions for various versions of Windows.

Last updated 1/02/02