Criminals and fraudsters are being blamed for the worldwide wave of e-mails unleashed by a new computer virus.
The Sobig.F virus, which first appeared on Monday, has entered the record books as the fastest spreading infection of its type, generating tens of millions of e-mails in three days, clogging up inboxes and bringing many computer systems to a standstill.
At its peak, between Tuesday and Wednesday, IT security firms estimate that the virus generated as many as one in 17 of every e-mail sent worldwide.
Experts suspect the virus installs a program that attempts to download a further malicious program from the Internet -- nicknamed malware -- which acts as a secret server for routing unsolicited "spam" e-mails such as those advertising pornography or quack remedies. It may also forward credit card details and passwords.
"We think there is a big tie-in with spam sellers, who may be writing these viruses in order to find new machines that they can exploit to send more spam," said Alex Shipley, senior anti-virus technologist at MessageLabs security company.
What makes the Sobig.F virus different from previous e-mail scares -- such as the so-called LoveBug virus and Klez worm -- has been its sudden appearance and rapid spread.
"It's hard to say where it originated from; it exploded so suddenly that it may have been started using spammers' tools," said Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant at Sophos, an anti-virus IT firm.
Indications are that the virus first appeared in the US, being posted to a number of sex and erotica news groups late on Monday night. Within an hour the first infected e-mails had appeared in inboxes.
The sudden upsurge may have been helped by a commercial spammer sending out the e-mails using mass-mailing software, catching many recipients unaware that a new virus was on the rampage.
In Asia, China's top Web security firm said yesterday that Sobig.F has infected 30 percent of all e-mail users in the country.
More than 20 million users opened and passed along the virus to domestic and regional networks, Hao Ting, spokeswoman for Beijing Rising Technology Shareholding Co Ltd, said.
"We haven't seen anything spread so fast," she said.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from