How The Bropia Worm Attacks

Currently, MSN Messenger users are under attack from a medium intensity threat called the Bropia F worm.

By using Messenger buddy lists, the malicious worm tries to send itself to others, offering the promise of adult images. If accepted, instead of pictures of nude women, according to Sophos.com:

Bizarrely, the Bropia-D worm plants a comical image of a sunburnt chicken onto infected users’ computers:

“Some may be amused by pictures of a chicken that’s been basking in the oven for too long, but it’s no joke receiving a battery of Bropia-D,” said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. “System administrators should encourage staff to take security seriously, and be wary of opening unsolicited attachments – even if they come in via instant messaging systems rather than regular email. If you don’t secure your computers you could end up with egg on your face.”

Once activated Bropia attempts to install a copy of another worm, the W32/Rbot-VH network worm and backdoor Trojan horse. Sophos offers a description:

This malicious worm allows hackers to take remote control of infected computers, allowing them to capture keystrokes and grab screenshots (allowing opportunities for identity fraud), and even capture webcam footage of the unsuspecting user.

Numerous sources report seeing Bropia in Asia and the United States, under these filenames (courtesy of TrendMicro):

bedroom-thongs.pif

webcam.pif

murdok | Breaking eBusiness News
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