All six of the Microsoft employees who had contact with the allegedly anthrax-contaminated letter reported in yesterday's WinInfo Daily UPDATE have tested negative for the inhaled form of anthrax, and none have become ill. The workers will be monitored for the less deadly cutaneous form of anthrax--which doctors can treat with standard antibiotics, but health officials describe the health risk from this form of anthrax to be "very, very low." This risk is consistent with most of the anthrax scares that are turning up around the country these days.
The Microsoft employees had come in contact with a suspicious letter from Malaysia. Apparently, someone in a Nevada Microsoft Licensing branch office had sent a check in a letter to a company in Malaysia, but the letter was returned. Somewhere in transit it was opened and resealed, with the check still inside, along with some pornographic materials. The pornography in the letter underwent three tests for anthrax, and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta will determine today whether it was contaminated.
In response to the scare, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said that the company is boosting security measures to keep its employees as safe as possible.
