CA today issued an early warning to computer users around the world that the Win32/Waledec Trojan is being readied for launch via spammed Valentine's Day e-cards. Once a computer is infected with the Trojan, it can use the machine as a spam bot while gathering information about the host system and sending the data to accomplice Web servers.
CA researchers noted last week that Waledac's affiliated e-card scam Web sites have updated their content with a Valentine's Day theme - an indication that attacks are being prepared. Currently, Waledec-related Web sites distribute Trojan executables with file names such as love.exe; onlyyou.exe; you.exe; youandme.exe; and meandyou.exe, but there could be new filenames that surface at any time.
“This threat is to be expected with any card-sending type of holiday, but there often is a new twist each year on delivery,” said Andrea Lodolo, CA Africa Manager of Technical Sales. “With a combination of awareness and ensuring your security software is current, individuals can be safe. Knowing about the threat early - before you find the e-mail in your inbox or get the alert from your IT department - helps ensure individuals don't open the e-mail and click on links that launch the malware.”
To stay safe online, CA researchers urge users to make sure they:
* Exercise caution when downloading and running unknown executable files, and if in doubt, don't.
* Update their anti-virus software to the latest signatures.
* Update their Internet browser to the most current version.
* Schedule automatic Microsoft Windows updates if using the Windows operating system.
“New threats to users are emerging daily and most arrive with little warning. In this case, we feel it is prudent to be proactive and protect ourselves against planned attacks, it saves a lot of heartache experienced after a successful attack," Lodolo added.
Please visit the CA Security Advisor blog for CA's Waledec Valentine's Day post and updates on this threat and others that are discovered.
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