Just in time for Valentine’s, notorious virus is back

Antivirus firms in Europe say they’ve contained the spread of a new Italian version of the “Love Bug” computer virus. The bug started spreading through Europe Wednesday night and infected computers at 10 companies, according to Trend Micro Inc. But on Thursday, antivirus companies reported just a smattering of infections. On Wednesday, Trend Micro reported that five companies in Italy, three in Germany and two in France received copies of the Love Bug variant, now known as “Cartolina” or “postcard” in Italian. The rate was a little alarming, said Trend Micro’s David Perry, because the firms all reported infestations in the middle of the night. Perry wouldn’t identify the victim companies, but said one firm had to shut down its e-mail server to deal with the virus. He worried the bug might spread more widely when employees arrived in the morning for Thursday’s work day in Europe. But a possible widespread outbreak didn’t materialize. Officials and Network Associates Inc. said only one client reported receiving the bug; U.K. firm MessageLabs Inc. says no customers reported receiving “Cartolina.” An outbreak in the United States was always considered unlikely because the e-mail containing the virus is in Italian. Cartolina works just like the Love Bug — once a victim is infected, the virus sends copies of itself to everyone in the victim’s address book. This virus also changes the default page of Internet Explorer to http://www.vije.it, an Italian music Web site.