Tip #4595 - Valentine's Day Storm Worm Printer Friendly Version | E-Mail This Tip
Q:
I haven't heard you talk about the Storm Worm lately. Is there anything
new going on with it?
A:
Oooh,
great question! And your timing is perfect, because I actually just
received word the other day that a new issue has developed concerning
the Storm Worm attack. Now, before I go any further, I want to refresh
everyone's memory on what the Storm Worm is. Basically, it's a Trojan
virus that's been circulating the Web since approximately January
2007. The virus comes through as a malicious e-mail and just wreaks
all kinds of havoc!
The
Storm Worm started out with such subject lines as "A Killer at
11" and "Castro is Dead." It then moved on to lines
like "USA Declares War on Iran" and then finished with subjects
such as "You've received a postcard from a family member"
or "You've received a greeting." Many of you are probably
familiar with the "Postcard Scam," because we have written
several articles about that in the last few months, but you may not
know it's part of the Storm Worm as well. And now, here we are in
February 2008 and it looks as if the Storm has hit again,
just in time for Valentine's Day. Keep reading for all the details!
The Storm Worm
always seems to creep back up during a holiday and since Valentine's
Day is right around the corner, it's time to start watching your e-mail
very closely once again. According to Snopes.com, there are several
subject lines coming through this time. I'll list a few of them for
you, but if you want to see the entire list, go here.
Here are some of the more common subject lines used for the Valentine's
Day Storm Worm:
- A Kiss So Gentle
- A Rose for My Love
-
- Dream of You
- Eternal Love
- Heavenly Love
- I Love You With
All I Am
- Inside My Heart
- Our Love Will Last
- Sending You All
My Love
- The Time for Love
- Why I Love You
- You're My Dream
So, basically,
if you receive an e-mail with a subject line that has anything to
do with love, romance or relating to Valentine's Day in any way, don't
open it! It's as plain and simple as that. Now, I know a lot of you
rely on your e-mail spam filters to sort through your junk mail, but
with this one, you really need to keep an eye on your Inbox as well.
It seems as if some of the spam filters are having trouble blocking
the malicious messages. Snopes said this is happening because the
e-mails are being generated by computers that are already infected,
which means there are an umpteen number of sources the e-mails could
be coming from. In short, your spam filter may be able to block these
e-mails, but pay close attention to your Inbox as well, just to be
certain.
The Storm Worm
e-mails are easily identified by the subject line, but you can also
tell them apart by the actual body of the e-mail. Each e-mail contains
a short message and a link. The link always uses an IP address instead
of a domain name, so if you pay attention, it should look a little
funny to you. It will look something like this: http://198.0.0.1,
which is not a normal link. Also, just so you're sure, if you open
the e-mail, your computer won't be harmed, but if you click on the
link, that's when you're in trouble!
The best thing
to do is delete the e-mail as soon as you see it. If it looks suspicious
to you, don't even waste your time opening it. And by all means, do
not click on the link! It's also a good idea to run your virus scans
on a regular basis (if you're not doing so already). Yes, it's unfortunate
that the Storm Worm is still looming around the Web, but if you're
cautious and use some common sense, it won't be able to bother you.
Be safe!
~ Erin
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