Security news
Security news26 August 2008
Hackers claim to have kidnapped babies in attempt to infect computers Trojan horse attack spammed out by cybercriminals
Experts at SophosLabs™, Sophos's global network of virus, spyware and spam analysis centers, have warned of a widespread spam campaign that pretends that the receipient's baby has been kidnapped.
The campaign tries to trick innocent computer users into opening a file claiming to be photographs of the infant, but are really malicious software.
The email claims that your baby has been kidnapped.
The malicious emails carry the subject line "We have hijacked your baby" and claim that a $50,000 reward must be paid for the child's safe return.
Attached to the email is a file, entitled photo.zip, which contains a malicious Trojan horse that will download further malware from the internet to compromise PCs. Sophos detects the Trojan horse as Troj/Resex-Fam.
"Receiving or reading these widespread emails themselves does not mean you are infected," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "However, if users open the attachment they will be infecting their Windows computer, and giving hackers an open door to take control and steal information. Once a PC is comandeered, criminals can spy, steal or launch attacks against other parts of the net."
Sophos believes that the disguise used by the hackers proves that there are no depths to which computer criminals are prepared to stoop to get financial reward.
"There's no other way of putting it - this attack is sick. Hackers have no qualms about exploiting a family's natural instinct to defend its most vulnerable members. Hopefully people will pause before opening the attachment, but the reflex action of some may be to click first and think later," continued Cluley. "Everyone should ensure they have defenses in place to properly protect against the very latest malware attacks."
Sophos recommends companies automatically update their corporate virus protection, and run a consolidated solution at the email gateway to defend against viruses and spam.
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
