Virus: W32/VBSun-A (aka "Tsunami Donation")
Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2005]
Subject: Tsunami Donation! Please help! Please help us with your donation and view the attachment below! We need you! Attachment: tsunami.exe |
Origins: It's an unfortunate fact of life that every disaster brings out people who view tragedy as an opportunity to exploit others — not just the victims, but also those who seek to help them.
The message quoted above is a sad example of this phenomenon: it's a come-on intended to appeal to recipients who believe that by following the inducement to read the message's attachment they will receive information about providing aid to victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, but instead all they end up with are computers infected with the W32/VBSun-A mass mailing worm.
According to Reuters:
It could also initiate a denial-of-service attack against a German hacking website, Sophos said, in which the site's server would be bombarded with messages, putting it out of action. "Duping innocent users into believing that they may be helping the tsunami disaster aid efforts shows hackers stooping to a new low," Sophos senior technology consultant Graham Cluley said in a statement.
The worm appears with the subject line: "Tsunami donation! Please help!" and invites recipients to open an attachment called "tsunami.exe" — which, if opened, will forward the virus to other Internet users.
Additional information:
 | Tsunami Disaster Donation Plea Is Really a Virus (Sophos) |
| | W32/VBSun-A (Sophos) |
Last updated: 17 January 2005
Sources: