belgareth
01-31-2006, 02:13 PM
Researchers Warn of File-Destroying Worm By ANICK JESDANUN, AP Internet Writer
NEW
YORK - If you have computer files you'd rather not lose, now
is a good time to make sure your anti-virus software is up to date. A worm set to activate Friday will corrupt
documents using the most common file types, including ".doc," ".pdf," and ".zip."
Hundreds of thousands of machines are believed to be
infected, mostly in India, Peru, Turkey and Italy, said Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer for Finnish security
company F-Secure Corp.
The worm, known as "CME-24,"
"BlackWorm," "Mywife.E" or a number of other monikers, even tries to disable anti-virus software that is out of
date, he said.
Thus, users should make sure their software
is turned on and has the latest definitions, generally available for free from the software vendor's Web site.
F-Secure also has created a free removal tool.
"If you are
infected, and you find out about it today, you still have time to get rid of the virus," Hypponen
said.
As worms go, the spread of BlackWorm is relatively
low. But worms these days are generally designed to help spammers and hackers carry out attacks, not to destroy
files as this one does. So the impact this time may be more
severe.
Microsoft Corp. issued an advisory Tuesday warning
customers about the worm, which affects most versions of its Windows operating
system.
Users should be safe if they have the latest
anti-virus software or if their computers are set with limited privileges, a common setting in larger organizations.
They are vulnerable if they, like many small business and home users, leave their computers set with full
administrative rights.
And users should check the date on
the computer. The worm hits the third of every month, so if the computer's local calendar settings are off,
Hypponen said, files may be destroyed sooner or later, even if the computer is never turned on
Friday.
NEW
YORK - If you have computer files you'd rather not lose, now
is a good time to make sure your anti-virus software is up to date. A worm set to activate Friday will corrupt
documents using the most common file types, including ".doc," ".pdf," and ".zip."
Hundreds of thousands of machines are believed to be
infected, mostly in India, Peru, Turkey and Italy, said Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer for Finnish security
company F-Secure Corp.
The worm, known as "CME-24,"
"BlackWorm," "Mywife.E" or a number of other monikers, even tries to disable anti-virus software that is out of
date, he said.
Thus, users should make sure their software
is turned on and has the latest definitions, generally available for free from the software vendor's Web site.
F-Secure also has created a free removal tool.
"If you are
infected, and you find out about it today, you still have time to get rid of the virus," Hypponen
said.
As worms go, the spread of BlackWorm is relatively
low. But worms these days are generally designed to help spammers and hackers carry out attacks, not to destroy
files as this one does. So the impact this time may be more
severe.
Microsoft Corp. issued an advisory Tuesday warning
customers about the worm, which affects most versions of its Windows operating
system.
Users should be safe if they have the latest
anti-virus software or if their computers are set with limited privileges, a common setting in larger organizations.
They are vulnerable if they, like many small business and home users, leave their computers set with full
administrative rights.
And users should check the date on
the computer. The worm hits the third of every month, so if the computer's local calendar settings are off,
Hypponen said, files may be destroyed sooner or later, even if the computer is never turned on
Friday.