04 Aug 2003
Apple Mac and Unix users immune from Mimail worm attack, advises Sophos Anti-Virus
Sophos technical support has advised users of Apple Macintosh
and Unix computers that they cannot be infected by the W32/Mimail-A worm.
"Mimail is a Windows 32 worm, meaning that it cannot execute
unless Microsoft Windows is present," explained Graham Cluley,
senior technology consultant for Sophos Anti-Virus. "Furthermore,
the Mimail worm relies upon a vulnerability in Microsoft
applications which is simply not present on Apple Mac and
Unix-based computers. Of course it is technically possible for
unaffected computer users to forward the infected email to
colleagues who use PCs, but this is unlikely to be a major vector
by which the virus will spread."
Sophos has advised that computer owners who use Microsoft
products for mail and web access, make sure they have the latest
security updates installed. Microsoft issued a patch months ago to protect against the
HTML exploit used by this worm. Microsoft has also published
step-by-step instructions for home users
on how to help protect their computers with critical updates.
About Sophos
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.