TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Latest Virus Didn't Fool Many Guys

Latest Virus Didn't Fool Many Guys

Lisa Minter (lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com)
Fri, 3 Jun 2005 21:14:55 -0500

Virus claiming Bin Laden arrest fools few on Web

A new computer virus in e-mails claiming that Osama Bin Laden has been
arrested has failed to lure many users to open dangerous attachments,
despite its high-profile headline, security software makers said on
Friday.

The virus began circulating in the past day and is one of several Bin
Laden-type viruses that have been distributed on the Internet since
May 2004. The current virus has a subject line claiming Bin Laden has
been arrested.

The U.S. government has been hunting Bin Laden since 2001, and holds
him responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United
States. He has not yet been found.

To become infected, a user has to click onto an attachment inside the
e-mail to activate malicious code which allows a computer hacker to
later use the infected computer to send spam and other nuisances on
the Web.

Oliver Friedrichs, a senior manager at the security response team at
Symantec Corp., the world's biggest maker of security software, said
only 10 of several thousand customers had alerted the company on
Friday about the virus.

Symantec rates the virus a "2" on a scale of "5," which is the most
threatening.

McAfee Inc., the second-biggest security software maker, said it had
seen few infections caused by the e-mail virus.

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

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