Qwest Communications thought its problems with the Code Red worm were finally over. Then the Washington state attorney general’s office stepped in.After receiving complaints from 15 to 20 customers whose DSL coverage was interrupted for 10 days in early August, the attorney general’s office asked the Denver-based company to give refunds to customers?at least one of whom says he lost $5,000 of business during the outage. An e-mail exchange, obtained by CIO through a public records request, provides a rare glimpse behind the curtain when customers, companies and attorneys try to assign blame after a security breach.“Please tell me how a company gears up for something like the Code Red worm virus?” Qwest executive Debbie Magnus asked the attorney general’s office in an e-mail dated Aug. 17 in response to an e-mail asking the company to issue refunds. “Qwest and Cisco have made every attempt to work with the customers on this problem. The problem is not the modem, the problem is the virus. Qwest is not crediting for the virus problem.”Steve Larsen, director of the attorney general’s cyberconsumer-protection division, responded that same Friday. “There are a number of companies that did protect against this virus when it came out in July and even before…. It seems reasonable that a customer should not have to pay for service they can’t get. If you can’t watch your cable TV or your newspaper doesn’t show up for days or weeks at a time, I assume you won’t pay.” Larsen then cited an article in that day’s Seattle Times, reporting that DSL customers with the same modems but different DSL providers fared better during the Code Red incident. “Guess I killed the messenger,” Magnus responded on Aug. 21, explaining more about the worm and how customers could apply a patch. “The credits are through the repair office just as normal repair credits are issued. Keep [the complaints] coming, just as you are supposed to, and I will keep responding without wounding you anymore.”Nevertheless, in early September a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office said the complaints were still outstanding. Related content BrandPost Leadership superpower: Succeeding sustainably As today's great leaders recognize, true success is not solely measured by the bottom line but also by the impact a business has on its stakeholders, including employees, partners, and the environment. By Marie Kalliney, Practice Leader, Digital Transformation Services, Broadcom Mar 28, 2023 5 mins IT Leadership BrandPost Helping the C-suite leverage their network as a business-boosting asset By Tanya O'Hara Mar 28, 2023 3 mins IT Leadership Opinion 5 hard questions every IT leader must answer Strong leadership is vital to IT success — and shouldn’t be taken for granted. Continual self-reflection is essential for knowing whether it’s time to restructure your approach to leading IT. By Thornton May Mar 28, 2023 5 mins Business IT Alignment IT Leadership Feature CIOs address the impact of hybrid work Assessing how some of the most progressive CIOs strive to provide both technological and emotional support for a dispersed workforce. By Pat Brans Mar 28, 2023 8 mins CIO Remote Work Employee Experience Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe