‘Ratos’ worm spreading rapidly

A new computer virus called the “Ratos Worm” is spreading rapidly via e-mail. Computer security firms Ahn Lab and Hauri said yesterday that this virus is attached to an e-mail entitled “photos.” The e-mail message contains phrases such as “LOL!:))))” (Internet-speak for “laughing out loud”) and includes an attached file titled “photos_arc.exe.” Infection takes place once the attachment is opened. When a computer system is infected, it overloads and creates malfunctions such as lags in processing speed. The worm rummages through the computer’s address book and sends out massive bulk e-mails, also entitled “photos.” Ahn Lab said that as of 2 p.m. yesterday, 15 infections had been reported. But the virus is quickly spreading, it added, saying that 1,800 cases of the virus being snared in anti-virus programs have been reported. “The worm viruses that we discover these days not only disable computer functions, they have hacking functions as well,” Hauri’s anti-virus director Han Myung-guk said. “Delete e-mails from indefinite sources. If infected, up-to-date vaccines can be downloaded from security firms’ sites,” he said. by Yoon Chang-hee