Last week's Code Red worm scare set the stage for an even bigger threat - the Code Red II worm was unleashed this past weekend and is infecting machines that were not patched last week. Machines that were patched with the fix for the original Code Red worm are immune from this new worm.

The new Code Red II worm is more dangerous than its predecessor because it leaves open a back door entry on an infected computer whereby hackers can enter the computer at a later date, change passwords, copy, browse, and delete files.

Computers that are vulnerable to the Code Red II worm include only computers running Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows NT 4.0 operating systems and the Internet Information Server (IIS) software.

If your computer is among those vulnerable to attack, you can download a patch from the Microsoft Web site. The patch will not hurt your computer and it will protect you from further infection.

Microsoft is providing the Code Red vulnerability patches for Windows NT and Windows 2000 system. Download the file and read the directions for installation.

Once you download the patch, you should follow this procedure:

1. Disconnect your computer from the Internet.
2. Reboot your computer - this will clear the worm from your computer's memory if the worm is already on your computer.
3. Apply the patch according to the directions at the Microsoft Web site.
4. Reconnect to the Internet.