A fast-spreading new Bagle-type virus is reported to be spreading in Europe and SA, with at least 45 000 PCs reported to have been infected around the world in the past three hours.
Anti-virus vendor NOD 32 picked up the virus, named Bagle.AS, this morning. Justin Stanford, CEO of NOD 32 in SA, says the virus is spreading via e-mail with various extensions in .exe .com and .cpl attachments.
The e-mail subject line is usually 'hello`, 'hi` or 'thanks` and the attachment is called 'joke` or 'price`. The sender addresses are spoofed.
"This virus was first picked up by NOD 32`s artificial intelligence technology this morning, and the spread is exponential," says Stanford. "An estimated 25% of all e-mails sent in Europe today are infected. This is roughly a reflection of the global picture."
A free cleaner is available to users at www.nod32.co.za.
Brett Myroff, CEO of local Sophos distributor Netxactics, says none of the company`s clients have reported infections yet. "This could be something that could be more of a threat to home users."
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