If you`ve received a mail from a colleague or friend with the subject line "Hi" and "Test =)" in the mail message then it is likely you have been hit by the new Bagle e-mail address stealing worm. The I.Worm.Bagle, also called Beagle, is a spam message that in turn steals e-mail IDs and uses the victim`s computer to mail on more infected spam.
The main intention of the worm appears to be to harvest millions of e-mail IDs that would likely be sold on to other spammers or at least used by the originators of the worm themselves. Users who have reported receiving the infected messages have reported a sudden increase in the amount of spam received as a result of becoming infected.
According to anti-virus and anti-spam developer MicroWorld Technologies Inc, the worm is patterned after the recent "Sobig" and "Mimail" outbreaks, which also turned scores of computers into zombie machines that spammers could control remotely to send torrents of get-rich-quick and sex aid messages to other computer users.
The e-mail infection or worm has a built-in SMTP Proxy Server that allows it to remotely send hundreds of mails to other users and apart from containing the familiar subject line of "Hi" there is also an executable file attachment identified by ".exe".
The body of the e-mail usually contains random characters. The virus component is triggered once a computer user clicks on the attachment, setting in motion an aggressive e-mail harvesting program that scans all documents on the infected computer`s network.
The e-mail worm is supposed to be active till 28 January 2004, MicroWorld`s eScan and MailScan products which are available locally from Camsoft Solutions (www.camsoft.co.za) have the necessary tools to combat virus and spam threats such as the I.Worm.Bagle.
"Spam can no longer be separated from viruses when putting preventative measures in place to stop viruses from spreading, and this is no more true than in the case of the I.Worm.Bagle," comments Matt Newnham, eScan product manager at Camsoft. "By managing and minimising spam in addition to controlling viruses infections the security and integrity of a user`s computing resources, including personal information such as e-mail addresses can be better protected from abuse," adds Newnham.
What do I do if my system is infected with the worm?
If your system is already infected by the I.Worm.Bagle and you don`t already have an effective anti-virus product like eScan protecting you against these infections, you can download the free MicroWorld Anti Virus Toolkit (MWAV Tool Kit) from ftp://ftp.microworldsystems.com/download/tools/mwav.exe
The tool checks your machine for viruses and removes them. This tool also cleans the registry and other system areas that can be damaged by viruses and it checks system process running in the background. If any illegal diallers or sniffer tools have been installed they are detected and removed. To prevent future infections though it would be advised to install a reliable anti-virus product such as eScan which is available from Camsoft Solutions - info@camsoft.co.za, 0800 616765.
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