Security news
Security news15 March 2006
"Slobodan Milosevic was killed" emails contain Trojan horse
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| The emails contain a Trojan horse. |
Experts at SophosLabs™, Sophos's global network of virus, spyware and spam analysis centers, have warned computer users to beware emails claiming to contain evidence that Slobodan Milosevic was killed. The emails really contain a malicious Trojan horse that attempts to lower the security on infected computers.
Email messages containing the Dropper-FB Trojan horse have been spammed out claiming to have photographic evidence about how Milosevic, who was found dead in his cell in the Netherlands on Saturday, died.
A typical message reads as follows:
Subject line: Slobodan Milosevic was killed
Attached file: picture.scr
Message body:
The real evidence in attached photo.
--------------------------
Scanned by Kaspercky Antivirus
Status: clean
"Newspapers and internet message boards are full of conspiracy theories as to how Slobodan Milosevic may have met his end, and this Trojan horse exploits interest in the breaking news story in an attempt to fool people into infection," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "Hackers are taking advantage of the public's morbid curiosity and appetite for breaking news in their desire to infect and compromise computers."
Slobodan Milosevic is the latest in a long line of public figures to be used as bait by malware authors and hackers. Politicians such as Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, Saddam Hussein, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Clinton, George W Bush and PW Botha have been have been used in the past. Furthermore, the promise of glimpses of glamorous pin-ups like Halle Berry, Anna Kournikova, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears or the stars of 'Sex and the City' have previously been used to help viruses spread.
Sophos continues to recommend computer users practise safe computing as well as running up-to-date anti-virus software.
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About Sophos
Sophos enables enterprises all over the world to secure and control their IT infrastructure. Sophos's network access control, endpoint, web and email solutions simplify security to provide integrated defenses against malware, spyware, intrusions, unwanted applications, spam, policy abuse, data leakage and compliance drift. With over 20 years of experience, Sophos protects over 100 million users in nearly 150 countries with its reliably engineered security solutions and services. Recognized for its high level of customer satisfaction and powerful yet easy-to-use solutions, Sophos has received many industry awards, as well as positive reviews and certifications.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com
