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The infamous Bagle has returned to attack the Internet community again. This time it is more malicious than before, and is spreading rapidly from Asia and Europe to America.
The new Internet worm Bagle.AS arrives in e-mails with a price or joke-related attachment and .exe, .cpl, .scr or .com extensions with any of the following subject lines:
The Bagle worm is comparable in size to MyDoom, the virus that slowed global Internet search sites in January.
Although Bagle has been spreading quickly it does not seem to be destroying files or damaging software.
The worm is transferred through shared network files and e-mail. It attaches itself to files and then sends itself to e-mail addresses that it finds on your machine.
The worm contains a backdoor that listens on TCP port 81 and a UDP port.Bagle.AS spreads also via peer-to-peer.
This means that these worms use e-mail addresses from computers they infect to fool you into opening an attachment. If you open the attachment, Bagle creates a 'back-door' which is 'a small programme that sits on your machine quietly listening for someone to contact it.'
MicroWorld Software Services Pvt Ltd has rated the Internet worm to be of medium risk.
The company, which is the developer of eScan, one of the leading brands in anti-virus and content security software, suggests that PC users should keep their systems updated with the latest antivirus vaccine.
Users are also advised to download the free MicroWorld Anti Virus Toolkit (MWAV Tool Kit) which is available on their website www.msspl.co.in to get rid of the worm.
The tool checks your machine for viruses. It also checks system processes running in the background. If any illegal dialers or sniffer tools have been installed, users are warned about the same.
Govind Rammurthy, CEO, MicroWorld, says: "Bagle and MyDoom have easily become one of the most prevalent worms on the Net. This goes to prove that unless PC users proactively protect their PCs with genuine and legal antivirus software, these worms will have a field day and will live for a long time to come."