June 5th, 2003 There's a really bad virus spreading - which was discovered yesterday, June 4th. As always, bottom line, update your anti-virus software to the latest version and update your definitions by doing a "live update" immediately! Read on..... NEW YORK (June 5) - A new computer virus that offers hackers full control of infected PCs, giving them access to critical information such as passwords and credit-card numbers, was spreading on the Internet Thursday.   The virus, dubbed ``BugBear.B'' by virus experts, follows two other quickly spreading e-mail viruses seen in recent weeks - ``Sobig.B'' and ``Sobig.C'' - but far exceeds them in its ability to do harm and in the aggressiveness of its spread.   E-mail filtering services company MessageLabs Inc. had blocked 37,400 copies of BugBear.B from 125 countries by midday Thursday, after barely registering a blip on Wednesday, when the first copies were seen.   Network Associates Inc. said it had received 100 infection reports from corporate and consumer customers as of Thursday morning. Its rival, Symantec Corp., said it received 180 infection reports from consumers and 51 from corporate customers.   All it takes is one e-mailed copy of the virus entering a corporate network for havoc to ensue. Once inside, BugBear.B will spread throughout a network.   Infected e-mails can carry various ``from'' addresses, which don't necessarily belong to the real sender. The subject lines and message texts also vary widely and in some cases are stolen from documents and files found on the victim's PC. The virus-laden attachment is compressed with a modified UPX format and shows up with multiple names.   BugBear.B, which is a variant of the ``BugBear'' virus that struck in late September 2002, installs a hidden file that can allow hackers to access infected machines, where they could delete files or run programs of their choosing.   Because the virus installs a keylogger program that collects a user's keystrokes, including passwords and credit-card numbers entered into Web sites, hackers could use their access to the PC to acquire such sensitive personal information.      Read more technical information at http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w32.bugbear.b@mm.html  ************************ Hope you enjoyed the ride.... Clyde Lerner, In The Moment Computing Phone: 408.732.8500 E-mail comments/feedback to: http://www.itmcomputing.com/contact_computer.php This newsletter is a service of In The Moment Computing and is Copyright 2005 Clyde Lerner. All worldwide rights reserved. If forwarding, please forward all of e-mail, not any portion therein. To see past issues of This and That Computer Tips newsletter, please visit the web at: http://www.itmcomputing.com/newsletter.php and click on "Archives." Please note: Unless requested, questions pertaining to this newsletter will be answered in a 3-4 week time frame. If you need a faster response, there will be a small consultation fee of $15 per e-mail response. You will receive a reply within 48 hours. "Complete Computer Help (Networks, New Computer Installs, Software Training) for Individuals and Small Businesses" "Designing your Perfect Website, at an Affordable Cost, in a Timely Manner" Eliminate and Destroy unwanted email: http://spamarrest.com/affl?1337207 Send a greeting card through the Internet so recipient gets card in their postal mailbox: www.sendoutcards.com/7197 - let me walk you through how to send a card - it's easy. ©2003 In The Moment (ITM) Computing. All rights reserved.