|
contents | software | |||||||
| Virus almanac 2007 – part one In the first six months of 2007 we have witnessed the appearance of numerous new and sometimes curious malicious codes. With this in mind, PandaLabs has once again published a list describing some of the more interesting strains of malicious code in circulation: - The most pious virus. This title goes to the USBToy.A worm, as it displays the following quote from the Bible on every system startup: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void. And darkness was upon the face of the deep. God said: Let there be light. And there was light. History Must Be Remember!".link - The wonders of GPS. The Burglar.A Trojan, in addition to stealing passwords and doing many other things, tells users exactly where their computer is using Google Maps. You might get infected, but at least you won't get lost…link - A union man. ArmyMovement.A could be a proud member of the trade union movement, as it sends a hoax with the subject, written in Turkish, saying: "A 50% wage increase from the government for military personnel and civil servants." Could it have been written by a hard-up Turkish soldier whose wife works for the government?link - Top journalist. The Rinbot.B worm could be aiming at the Pulitzer prize. Its code includes a supposed CNN interview with the creator explaining why he has created the worm. It makes the Watergate investigation look like child's play.link - The most indecisive. It spreads via email, with the sender's name generated at random. The message subject is also variable, as is the text content. It includes an attachment… also with a variable name. And does the name of the malicious code itself vary? Well not yet anyway, it's the Piggy.B worm.link - What a gossip! Sssh! Keep it quiet, otherwise this snooper will be sure to find out… XPCSpy registers keystrokes, captures screenshots, logs web pages visited, opens windows, programs run and even email, chat and IM messages… It's just impossible to keep a secret with this malicious code about.link - The most deceitful. VideoCach tricks users by warning of non-existent threats, displaying a message claiming that there is malware on the computer. It uses it to bait the victim into buying a certain program. If the user doesn't follow this advice, the adware will continue claiming that the computer is infected. Even Pinocchio didn't lie that much.link - The joker in the pack. Ketawa.A earns the title so far of this year's joker. Apart from other typical Trojan behavior, such as creating files or modifying the registry, it displays a screen with a joke in Indonesian. Really funny no doubt… if you understand it.link - And the best actor is... There are two nominees for this award. In the junior category, Harrenix.A for its "simulation of a trailer of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". While in the senior category, we have Pirabbean.A, for a great performance in "simulating a trailer of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End". And the winner is… link link - The sound of music. Now moving on to music, the undisputed winner is the Gronev.A worm, as it opens Windows Media Player and plays a piece of music called Lagu. A great composer.link - The most talkative. This title goes to the BotVoice.A Trojan, which plays a recording telling infected users: "You have been infected I repeat You have been infected and your system files has been deleted. Sorry. Have a Nice Day and bye bye". Just the thing for someone with nobody to talk to.link Even though some of these may seem interesting, or even fun, users should steer well clear of the threats mentioned above or any others. For this reason, Panda Software advises users to ensure they have reliable antivirus software installed and kept up-to-date daily. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Computing News :: home page |