Viruses/Worms News

Boface worm variant spotted on Facebook

Friday, May 15, 2009

Security researchers have discovered a variant of the Boface worm called Boface.BJ.worm, which tricks users of Facebook into installing malware and purchasing phony anti virus software.

According to the web security firm, Boface has infected 1 percent of all computers it has scanned since August 2008. The security firm estimates that 2 million Facebook users could be infected with the worm, according to eWEEK.

Researchers reported the Boface worm infects computers by a variety of means, including email attachments, FTP transfers and P2P file sharing. When an infected user logs into their Facebook account, the worm sends a message to that user's entire network of friends asking them to click on a link, eWEEK reported.

Users who click on the link are directed to a fake YouTube page that asks them to download a "media player" to watch a nonexistent video. If they do that, the malware is downloaded, which blasts messages telling the user their computer is infected and that the user needs to buy an "anti virus solution," according to eWEEK.

Experts said the number of attacks on social networks like Facebook and Twitter is increasing for a good reason - research published in February found that that malicious code distributed via social networking sites has a success 10 times greater than email attacks.