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A computer virus spreading through fake e-mails crashed the
computers of the World Cup organizing committee (FIFA), overloading
the system with millions of e-mails.
The W32/Sober-N worm has swept to the top of the most widespread
virus chart in the last 36 hours, accounting for 77.03% of
all viruses seen by Sophos's monitoring stations around the
world.
The virus is contained in attachments coming from senders
with addresses such as ticket@fifa.de" or "gewinn@fifa.de,"
telling fans they have won tickets to next year's tournament.
Organisers were still unable to send e-mails late Tuesday,
spokesman for FIFA, Gerd Graus said, adding that preparations
for next year's World Cup were unaffected.
Like earlier versions of the Sober worm, the bilingual virus
can travel in both English and German e-mails as an attached
file. The worm can use a variety of different subject lines
and message bodies, said Graham Cluley, senior technology
consultant for London's Sophos computer security firm.
Users who open the attached file will find that their computers
will get infected with the worm mass-mailing itself to other
e-mail addresses found on the infected computer.
"Many people will be eager to attend one of the biggest
sporting events in the world next year, and may think it is
worth the risk of opening the e-mail attachment just in case
the prize is for real," Cluley said.
Spokesman Gerd Graus said e-mails from the organisers to
fans confirming they had obtained tickets contained no attachments.
Fans who got tickets during the first selling phase that
ended March 31 already had been informed by April 22. Another
selling period began May 2, for so-called team specific tickets,
and those who ordered them got an immediate e-mail confirmation,
also without an attachment.
Accounting for 2 in every 3 viruses travelling across the
internet at the moment the Sober-N worm has given PC users
an important wake-up call, stressing the necessity of anti
virus protection. This problem could have been combated by
installing ArmourPlate, which stops viruses dead before they
reach your network.
ArmourPlate uses three respected anti virus software suites
and our own proprietary technology that detects and stops
new viruses that have not yet been discovered. In short the
ArmourPlate service gives users complete protection from new
and existing virus threats as well as protecting systems from
Spam. Tristan Palmer, Managing Director, ArmourPlate said
"If FIFA used ArmourPlate this simply woudn't have happened
to them"
Source: Sophos
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Cup Organisers Warn of E-Mail Virus - 04/05/2005
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