WebTV has been hit by a self-replicating bug that is wreaking havoc with the company's message boards and newsgroups.

Dubbed the "Flood Virus," the bug finds its way inside the e-mail system of WebTV subscribers and floods the company's network with messages without their knowledge.

The bug comes as a surprise to subscribers, who are told they do not have to worry about viruses on the Internet.

However, Microsoft - which owns WebTV - claims the situation is a hack, not a virus, and that the problem is not widespread.

More details can be found at www.news.com.