SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -- An Internet e-mail worm that
leaves a back door on infected systems for possible future attacks
spread quickly through Asia and Europe on Monday but slowed down as
U.S. companies updated their anti-virus software, a computer
security researcher said.
The Lovegate.C worm, which first appeared in Asia, sends messages
to two different e-mail addresses in Beijing once it infects a
computer, said Joe Hartmann, director of North American anti-virus
research for Tokyo-based Trend Micro Inc.
"The virus author could then connect to the infected system and do
anything he wants to, (like) steal confidential information, delete
files or run other applications on the computer," Hartmann
said.
Uses address book
Once a computer user clicks on the attachment, the worm -- a
self-propagating computer virus -- spreads by sending itself to
recipients listed in an infected computer's address book, he
said.
If the computer is running Microsoft Corp.'s Outlook or Outlook
Express e-mail programs the worm automatically replies to new
incoming e-mails using the same subject line as the original
message.
It also spreads via shared network folders, Trend Micro said. There
had been about 10,000 infections worldwide, Hartmann said.
