21 Nov 2003
Fake PayPal emails continue to cause worm worries, Sophos warns of computer virus crime
Sophos reports that the latest versions of the Mimail worm
(W32/Mimail-I and
W32/Mimail-J) are
continuing to spread widely, putting the credit card details of
computer users at risk.
The worms pose as emails from the popular online payment website
Paypal, asking users to confirm their credit card information. The
latest Mimail-J variant even goes so far as to request a user's
social security number and their mother's maiden name. There are
now a total of ten different versions of the Mimail worm reported
to have infected users across the internet.
"Greed is driving criminals to exploit the internet to con as
many people out of their credit card details as possible," said
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "All
computer users should treat any unexpected request for banking
information with caution, or they may end up out of pocket.
Anti-virus software can protect you, but you must be as
'street-smart' on the internet as you would be in the shopping
mall."
Sophos recommends that businesses filter email with a product
such as Sophos PureMessage or Sophos MailMonitor to protect against virus
attacks and unwanted content. Furthermore, companies should update
your anti-virus software regularly and frequently so they can
identify the latest threats accurately. Using a service like
Sophos Enterprise Manager which can
automate updates takes the stress and uncertainty out of the
process.
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.