Beware 'beach babes' malware on FaceBook
Malware posing as slideshow of beach babes are affecting thousands of Facebook users.
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THOUSANDS of Facebook users are being suckered by a virus masquerading as a slideshow of beach babes, FoxNews.com reported. The malware comes from a post on users’ walls that advertises a video of Distracting Beach Babes, and includes a picture of a young woman in a bikini. Clicking on the video link takes you to a rogue Facebook application that will display a bogus message, leading you to download adware to your computer, warned security-software firm Sophos. Meanwhile, the application will forward the video to all your Facebook pals - in your name.
The virus is probably related to the more widespread “sexiest video ever” scam, which also offers a tantalising picture before attempting to install malicious software on a user’s computer. These schemes may seem silly, but they can be very successful, according to Mr Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant with Sophos. “Many Facebook users are all-too-comfortable with receiving salacious videos and humorous links from their friends, and will click on them without a moment’s thought,” FoxNews reported him as saying. “Unfortunately, that can then begin a bombardment of malicious posts to their social- networking contacts – do you really want a blitz like this unleashed in your name?”
Noting that the scam began spreading over the weekend, Mr Cluley wondered whether that reflected deliberate timing by the cybercriminals. He asked: Do they “deliberately launch these campaigns on the weekends, imagining that anti-virus researchers and Facebook’s own security team might be snoozing”? Mr Cluley advised Facebookers hit by the scam to delete the message from their wall, scan their computer with an up-to-date anti-virus application, and change their password. He also hoped they will learn a lesson. “Don’t be so quick to click on unsolicited links in the future.”
