W97M/Prilissa - a bug whose payload is set to go off Christmas Day - strikes Fortune 500 firms on three continents.
Published:
21 November 1999 y., Sunday
It_s called the W97M/Prilissa virus. But a better name for it would be the Grinch virus. Anti-virus researchers at Network Associates Inc. said Friday that 10 Fortune 500 companies on three continents have been hit with a new virus called W97/Prilissa. Prilissa is a nasty variant on two better known attacks - the Melissa worm and the PRI virus. The virus depends on the Windows 95 and 98 operating systems and the Word 97 word processing application. IF OPENED, IT WILL E-MAIL itself to the first 50 names on a computer_s Outlook or Outlook Express e-mail client.
"This is probably the fastest infection rate we_ve seen since Melissa," said Sal Viveros, anti-virus product manager at Network Associates, in Santa Clara, Calif. The virus uses macro commands similar to those of Melissa to replicate itself. But the virus itself won_t go off until Christmas day. That means it won_t have much of an impact on companies, which aren_t likely to be open on that day, even if it should go undetected. But there is a big threat to home PC users, particularly unsuspecting children logging onto the computer to play with their new games on Christmas. The Dr. Suess analogies are endless. The virus itself looks for a registry key to verify if the local system has been infected. If it hasn_t, the virus creates a Microsoft Outlook e-mail message with the subject line "Message From (Office 97 user name)" and a message body that says "This document is very Important and you_ve GOT to read this!!!"
The first 50 listings from all address books are selected, along with an attachment - the infected document, whatever it is.
If the date is Dec. 25, the virus runs a destructive payload to overwrite the existing C:/AUTOEXEC.BAT file with instructions to format the C: drive.
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
Software company announced new structure_ of it_s business.
more »
FTTH Network Provides High-Speed Internet, IPTV and VoIP Telephony in One.
more »
FIRE crews came to the rescue of two security guards who were trapped inside a cash machine for nearly two hours.
more »
Wincor Nixdorf International has named Patrick Wright its new chief executive officer for the U.S. division.
more »
Deutsche Telekom selects Motorola’s IPTV set-tops for T-Home Entertain Services; users to receive compelling, rich media experiences.
more »
New regional development center in Germany is part of $75 million global investment by Windows Embedded Business.
more »
Diogo Vasconcelos, the newly elected President of the Portuguese National Association for the Development of Telecommunications (APDC), has promised to transform the organisation's role in driving forward the country's digital agenda.
more »
Microsoft is helping transform the upcoming Democratic and Republican national conventions into the most technologically advanced and inclusive conventions ever held.
more »
Visa and leading North American financial institutions have agreed to launch a pilot with up to 2,000 participants to test the delivery of real-time notification alerts on Visa accounts.
more »
Wincor Nixdorf International has secured a deal to provide ATMs to Banktech, an independent ATM provider in Australia.
more »
Financial breaches and identity theft cases seem to be in the headlines on an almost regular basis. Just last month, hackers broke into a Citibank-branded ATM network and stole millions.
more »