Thaindian News

Facebook has 175 million users and worms. It is small surprise that a popular social networking site like Facebook will be targeted with worms, viruses and trojans. A number of new Facebook users are older people who may not be able to detect these worms at all so the next time you log in, be cautious.

The latest worm is a new shape that “Koobface” has morphed into. It has targeted other social networking sites like MySpace, Friendster, Bebo and hi5.com and it has been around for some time now. However, security firm Trend Micro says this worm has morphed into a new form.

So how does this work? You first get a message saying a friend has invited you to watch a video by clicking on a link. When you click on the link you are taken to a page that resemble a YouTube page that also has a picture of the friend who has sent you the link. This is actually a form of “social engineering” where you are tricked into downloading malware because the worm knows you will trust your friends.

On the fake YouTube page you are asked to install Adobe Flash Player to view the video. When you click on the install button it installs the worm to your computer. The worm then gets to your computer and sends similar messages to your friends from your profile.

To avoid being hit, be vary careful about clicking on suspicious looking links, even if they are from friends. Also do not install programs or plug-ins without careful consideration and if you are asked to install the flash player, pick it up only from the Adobe site where it is safe. Keep your anti-virus up-to-date and be careful before you install any application on Facebook. Google might help you find names of suspected malware.

Two other worms doing the rounds of Facebook are “The Error Check System” and an application that gives you a notification that tells you that you have violated the site’s terms of service.