But computer and network safety agencies are taking a comparatively restrained approach to the widespread publicity they have given previous virus scares.

The virus, a file named Navidad.exe, comes attached to emails, and has the power to destroy the operating system and all documents on a recipient's computer once it is opened.

An expert from the Beijing Rising company, one of the leading virus prevention companies in China, said it had received four reports of Navidad infection, and obtained one virus sample.

Zhang Shuangqiao, deputy director of the Tianjin-based National Computer Virus Prevention Product Inspection Centre, said the scope of infection is limited, and people need not be frightened.

Rising's expert also said his company would not play up the infection until it had spread substantially.

An official with Beijing Jiangmin Technology, which produces the powerful KV 300 series, said the company had not found the virus so far, but even if it received a sample, it would not immediately publicize it.

Anti-virus companies and media gave large-scale publicity to the horrors of the "Mellissa" virus last year and the "I Love You" virus this summer.

Because of different situations in China, the two, according to Zhang Shuangqiao, would actually not cause too much harm to Chinese computers.

The tempered attitudes towards the new computer virus appear to be a result of governmental regulations.

A computer virus prevention regulation released by the Ministry of Public Security in August stipulates that anti-virus software developers are allowed to release virus epidemic information, but cannot publicize false and aggrandized messages.

The ministry also released standards to evaluate the quality of anti-virus software in August.

(China Daily 11/17/2000)