Viruses And USB Flash Drives
Monday, January 26, 2009
One of the nasty things about the Conficker virus (10 million PCs and counting) is its multiple methods of infection, including the way it infiltrates USB flash and network drives.
Imagine you get a flash drive from a friend, plug it in, and get the following message. Look closely. It seems like normal Windows, right? Wrong. If you pick the first choice ("publisher not specified") you just infected yourself with Conficker.
This is the virus using a real Windows window to confuse you. Keep an eye out for any change, however small, to the usual things your computer does. In this case the virus inserts itself before the normal Windows options, knowing that most people simply click the first link without looking. You can disable Autoplay to avoid this particular trick, but there will be others.
Another nasty thing about Conficker is the second shoe it may be about to drop. Researchers say they expect Conficker to download and install a second payload that may do more to your computer than simply infect it. So patch your computer, keep that antivirus software current, and stay tuned to Tech Tips for more news.
Posted byTriona Guidry at 1:08 PM
Labels: alerts, antivirus, consumers, emergency, malware, small business, spyware, windows