German computer virus poses as anti-virus program
Data security experts are warning about a new computer virus that masquerades as an anti-virus program.
Kaspersky Labs says the Yarner worm is spreading across Germany.
It arrives as an email purporting to be a message from an anti-virus website.
If the attachment - which is disguised as a copy of the anti-virus program YAW - is opened it scans for new victims from users' address books.
It also perpetuates its spread by establishing a connection to a remote SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) server.
In one in ten cases it destroys all data on an infected computer.
Kaspersky recommends users exercise caution before opening unsolicited emails, even if they appear to be from a recognised anti-virus developer.
