WORMS IN THE COMPUTER

45,000 Facebook users mainly in the UK and France have recently fallen victim to a virus known as Ramnit, a worm which steals their user names and passwords. This nasty piece of malware can destroy software components such as Microsoft and HTML. The virus spreads its ugly head by getting into Facebook accounts because cybercriminals are well aware that many of use the same passwords on different sites. Users are urged to click on a link (usually promising free gifts or a prize) and when a user clicks on this the virus is circulated to all of their friends. Twitter is also vulnerable to attacks by urging people to click on fraudulent links, if you click on one of these you will be linked up to a fake Twitter account where the scammers can access your login details. To be safe never click on anonymous links and beware of any messages which contain spelling mistakes (the scammers operate from countries where English is not the first language spoken). Also check the URL and see if it has a misplaced letter or bogus domain name, i.e. tweeter.com, you can always ignore the link and do a search for it yourself just to be sure and don't forget to change your password everytime you register on a new site. Facebook is now investigating the Ramnit threat but in the meantime be extra vigilant when on social networking sites.