Mariposa virus makes jump to mobile cell phones
Earlier this month it was reported that the new Android-based Vodafone HTC Magic handset carried a virus on the memory card. This malware was initially discovered by Panda Security. Vodafone stated that it was an “isolated incident.” However, since then more cell phone virus infections have been reported.
According to Cnet, Panda Security has been investigating the recent cell phone infection incident in Spain. Several HTC Magic phones have been found to be carrying the Mariposa botnet virus. This virus latches onto a user’s computer and steals private credit card and banking information.
The alleged ringleader has been arrested earlier this month. However, the virus is still cropping up in various places. After Panda Security’s report, Vodafone Spain launched an investigation into the cell phone virus infections.
It seems that over 3,000 HTC Magic handsets have been infected by the malware. Apparently a batch of cell phone memory cards became infected with the virus. The incident seems to be isolated to Spain for now, but no one knows how the virus got onto those memory cards.
Vodafone Spain issued a statement indicating that the company is reaching out to “identified customers” to warn them of the virus. The company will also be sending the customers new memory cards and a way to verify the integrity of their phones.
Apparently, the virus remains dormant while on the cell phone, but becomes active once a user connects the phone to a PC. Once connected, a auto-run process kicks in executing the virus.
Panda Security has provided a downloadable vaccine that disables auto-run on your PC to prevent the virus from executing automatically. This nasty virus seems to latch onto any form of portable memory or storage. SD memory cards and USB thumb drives have also been infected by this particular virus. Currently, approximately 13 million PCs have been infected.
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