Virus writers stage gorilla attack

Beware of an albino gorilla invading your Inbox, it probably means you are the victim of a new computer worm.

According to anti-virus experts, the Wurmark-K worm spreads via email, displaying a picture of a grinning albino gorilla as it infects computers.

The dodgy emails have subject lines such as ‘Hehehe LOL!!' and 'Your Photo Is On A Webpage!!' and text like 'I was vieweing this website and came across a picture they look just like you...pic is attached a zip so download it and check & email me back!'.

But once the attached picture file has been opened, the computer will be infected by Wurmark-K, with the image of an albino gorilla displayed. Wurmark-K then installs the Rbot-ABK network worm and backdoor Trojan horse, which can let hackers steal information or add even more malicious code.

Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos, said: "This worm is no laughing matter - its intent is to hand over control of your PC to remote hackers. Unless computer users properly defend themselves with up-to-date anti-virus software, firewalls and security patches then they run the risk of having their PCs exploited and their bank accounts emptied."

According to Sophos, if you attach a new, unpatched and unprotected computer to the internet, then it “can easily be under the control of hackers within a matter of minutes."