A New Powerfull Virus - FOCSoft

A New Powerfull virus : Flame

A powerful malware called Flame has wormed its way into the Internet. The espionage programme has been designed to target West Asian nations but could invade the India cyberspace as well, experts warned on Tuesday.

India, a member of the 142-country International Telecommunication Union (ITU), has been alerted of the virus attack. ITU said Worm.Win32.Flame was more complex than all other known cyber menaces and analyzing it required a large team of top-tier security experts with vast experience.

Worm.Win32.Flame, which had been “in the wild” for more than two years since March 2010, was discovered on Monday by leading Russian anti-virus firm Kaspersky Lab. An investigation prompted by ITU led to the discovery that could spark another round of cyber warfare in West Asia after notorious worm Stuxnet, allegedly released by Iran to target Israel, and its data-stealing cousin Duqu.The programme can steal valuable information, including computer display content, stored files, contact data and even audio conversations.

Five facts about Flame:

1. Complexity: It is one of the most sophisticated pieces of malicious software ever discovered. It has about 20 times as much code than Stuxnet. It is built with some 20 modules - researchers still don't understand the full purpose of most of them.

2. Breadth : It is the most complete data-stealing tools found to date. It can record sounds, access Bluetooth communications, capture regular screenshot images and log Internet Messaging conversations.

3. Network: The creators of the virus used a network of some 80 servers across Asia, Europe and North America to remotely access infected machines. They can change settings on personal computers and quietly gather the stolen data. It is the largest such Command and Control network identified to date.

4. Victims: The largest number of infected computers were found in Iran, followed by Israel and the Palestinian territories. The virus also turned up in Sudan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Kaspersky researchers estimate that altogether between 1,000 and 5,000 machines were infected worldwide.

5. Perpetrator: Kaspersky researchers decline to say which nation or nations they believe are behind Flame. The creators of Stuxnet and Flame employed similar techniques to infect computers, which suggests that they were "parallel" projects backed by the same nation state.

“This is like a guided missile and is sent to steal precise information its operator wants,” he said.
It has been designed to target West Asian nations, but such programmes always pose a threat to all nations as they can easily be modified to attack any geographic location, he warned.

Please Share This Post With Your Frinds :) FOCSoft

SOCIALIZE IT →