Computer Associates Warns Of New Cybernet Virus

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Grassroots Information Coordination Center (GICC) : One Thread

Computer Associates Warns Of New Cybernet Virus By Sylvia Dennis, Newsbytes ISLANDIA, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 25 May 2000, 7:01 AM CST Just when the worries about the LOVEYOU virus were starting to fade, Computer Associates [NYSE:CA] has warned its customers about a dangerous new polymorphic virus that spreads by attaching to outgoing e-mail.

The virus, known as Cybernet, sends itself to the first 50 entries found in a user's Microsoft Outlook address book and is reported to be already "in the wild. As a result, the IT security firm said it is monitoring the situation closely.

Computer Associates said that Cybernet is reminiscent of the Melissa virus and, as such, has been awarded a medium risk by its antivirus staff.

The firm said it has the potential to overload e-mail servers due to the volume of mail sent out automatically. Unlike the VBS worms in the LIVEYOU vein recently discovered, the company said that Cybernet infects Microsoft Word and Excel files.

The e-mail arrives with a subject line "You've GOT Mail !!!" and the text of the message reads: "Please, saved the document after you read and don't show to anyone else. The document is also VIRUS FREE ... so DISREGARD the virus protection warning !!!"

Simon Perry, Computer Associates' vice president, said that the executable will try to format the PC's hard drive, following the next reboot by the user.

Perry said that Cybernet represents a high threat to all e-businesses and home users, due to its ability to completely flood mission-critical e-mail networks.

The IT security firm is offering free downloads of its antivirus software for personal use at http://antivirus.ca.com .

Reported by Newsbytes.com, http://www.newsbytes.com .

http://www.newsbytes.com/pubNews/00/149603.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), May 25, 2000


Moderation questions? read the FAQ