Scammers Customize News To Deliver You Malware


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March 16, 2009 12:02 PM PDT

Scammers customize news to deliver you malware

by Elinor Mills Security experts warned on Monday of a new insidious e-mail scam that features false information about a bomb explosion in the recipient's hometown and leads to a malicious Web site. The subject lines include "Take Care!" and "Are you and your friends in good health?" The e-mail includes a link to what looks like a news article on a Reuters page about the bombing. But the Web page and the news are fake, according to e-mail security provider Marshal and antivirus firm Sophos.

The scammers are using IP address geolocation techniques to figure out what city the recipient lives in and are localizing the fake bomb news to that location.

Meanwhile, clicking on the fake Reuters video page leads to malicious Waledac code being downloaded on the computer, the security firms said.

Earlier this year, the Waledac worm tricked people with fake Valentine's e-mails.

The fake page circulating now also includes Wikipedia and Google search links as "Related Links" at the bottom in an attempt to make the pag

A spokesperson for LiveJournal did not immediately return a phone call or e-mail seeking comment.

CNET News [& screenshots] - http://news.cnet.com/security/

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