New Worm WORM_GREW.A

A new malicious worm began infecting systems last week, which promises to launch an attack on February 3rd ? and the 3rd of every month thereafter, according to threat researchers at antivirus and content security firm Trend Micro. The new worm, known by such names as Nyxem, BlackMal, Mywife, and CME-24, has infected hundreds of thousands of machines over the past week,
most from unsuspecting users who do not yet know they are infected.

Like most worms, WORM_GREW.A propagates via email attachments and network shares, including popular P2P file sharing services. The email method of transmission employs common social engineering techniques ? including the promise of pictures, pornographic content, or a joke ? to entice users to open the corresponding attachment.

According to Jamz Yaneza, Senior Threat Analyst at Trend Micro, though this worm utilizes common propagation techniques, the code itself is anything but common. ?This is a destructive virus that deletes and overwrites any number of files present on a user?s system, by targeting the most popular file formats ? including .DOC, .XLS, .PPT, .PDF, and .ZIP, to name just a few? says Yaneza. ?In addition to losing a great deal of data, this virus also renders the keyboard and mouse inoperable, thereby leaving the user?s system dead in the water.? Yaneza adds that this is a truly global threat, affecting computer systems in over 150 countries, to date.