Sunday January 2 2:56 PM ET
Computer Associates Warns of More Viruses
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Computer Associates International Inc. warned of more viruses and destructive computer programs Sunday.
It said in a statement that a new Portuguese ``Happy New Year' Trojan called ``Feliz.Trojan' were destructive programs that disguise themselves as benign applications.
However, Trojans, unlike viruses, do not replicate themselves. When started, the program will immediately delete certain files and then leave the user with an ``ugly looking face entitled 'FELIZ ANO NOVO' or 'Happy New Year'.'
It also warned of a new Word macro virus called ``Armagidon,' which infects Word documents by spreading through traditional means such as emails, shared drives, and floppy disks.
The company also warned computer users of a new worm named 'Wscript/Kak,' which infects Windows98 systems. It requires a very specific environment to exist before infection and spread can occur.
The worm spreads through e-mail using Outlook Express 5.0 on Windows98 systems only and it will infect Windows98 systems running Outlook Express 5.0 even if users don't open any attachments from the infected mail, Computer Associates said.
``Though this virus isn't Y2K-related, its discovery further confirms that hackers will exploit user fears throughout the Y2K changeover,' said Simon Perry, security business manager at Computer Associates in a statement. ``Since the user doesn't even have to open the attachment for the worm to be executed, this has the potential to spread rapidly and quietly.'
Computer Associates, which provides software and support and integration services, said the latest information on the viruses is available at cai.com and protection from the latest Trojans, viruses and worms can be downloaded free at antivirus.cai.com. |
