Bad Times is a computer virus hoax sent out by e-mail. The original text was written by Patrick Rothfuss, author of The Kingkiller Chronicle. This "virus" does not actually exist, and the "warning" is meant to parody the alarmist message that spread the hoax of the Goodtimes virus. Like the "Goodtimes" hoax, the message warns of the horrible consequences that the virus can inflict; however, unlike "Goodtimes", where all of the consequences might have sounded plausible to people unfamiliar with computers, many of the claims made for the "Badtimes" virus are utterly implausible, such as that the virus "will drink all your good beer" and "will leave dirty socks on the coffee table when you are expecting company."
It is debatable whether the "Badtimes" message can be classed as a "hoax", since the intent seems to be to make the claims ludicrous enough to not fool anyone. However, Sophos' page on "Badtimes" classifies it under hoaxes and claims "... some users are still concerned by the message and we recommend you do not forward it to friends and colleagues."
The parody even inspired a musical version, by the group Laika, where the female lyricist recites the contents of one of the versions of the virus.
The "Weird Al" Yankovic song, Virus Alert, contains several similar claims in its lyrics.
Famous quotes containing the words bad and/or times:
“When we do not know the truth of a thing, it is of advantage that there should exist a common error which determines the mind of man.... For the chief malady of man is restless curiosity about things which he cannot understand; and it is not so bad for him to be in error as to be curious to no purpose.”
—Blaise Pascal (1623–1662)
“There were times when I felt that I could bear no more. It was the Emergency Ward which almost broke me. I stood one night beside a man who had been caught in a flywheel, and whose body felt like jelly. I wanted him to die quickly, not to go on breathing. Oh, stop breathing. I can’t stand it. Die and stop suffering. I can’t stand it. I can’t.”
—Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876–1958)