Sobig.F Continues to Threaten Users While Blaster is Still Infecting Computers

Panda Software advises users not to drop their guard, as there is still a high probability of being hit by these viruses

MADRID, August 27, 2003 – According to data collected through Panda Software’s international tech support services, even though the number of incidents involving Sobig.F is starting to decrease, the worm is continuing to spread. A significant number of message carrying this worm are continuing to circulate around e-mail servers, and as a result the chances of being hit by this virus are still high.

The integrity of hundreds of thousands of systems, even large corporate networks, around the globe is still at risk. For this reason, users are warned not to drop their guard and to implement the necessary security measures, as they could still be hit by Sobig.F.

As users in many countries return to work after the summer vacation, new incidents caused by the Blaster worm are being reported. This malicious code exploits the RPC DCOM vulnerability in some versions of Windows to get into computer directly through the Internet. A basic security measure to adopt in this case is to apply the patches released by Microsoft to fix this vulnerability. These can be downloaded from http://www.microsoft.com/security/security_bulletins/ms03-026.asp where you can also find detailed information about this flaw.

It is important to bear in mind that while there are computers infected with either of these malicious code they can continue spreading. In order to prevent this, it is important to scan computers and eliminate these viruses if they are detected. To fight this epidemic, Panda Software offers all users its free PQREMOVE utilities, designed to clean and restore computers affected by Sobig.F or Blaster. These tools can be downloaded from http://www.pandasoftware.com/download/utilities/.

Users can also detect this and other malicious code using the free, online antivirus, Panda ActiveScan, which is available on the company’s website at http://www.pandasoftware.com Finally, Panda Software advises users to update their antivirus solutions immediately. The multinational antivirus manufacturer has already released the updates, which ensure their antivirus solutions detect these worms. Therefore, if your software is not configured to update automatically, you can update it from the company’s website at http://www.pandasoftware.com/.

Detailed information about Sobig.F and Blaster
is available from Panda Software’s Virus Encyclopedia.

About Panda Software’s virus laboratory
On receiving a possibly infected file, Panda Software’s technical staff get straight down to work. The file is analyzed and depending on the type, the action taken may include: disassembly, macro scanning, code analysis etc. If the file does in fact contain a new virus, the disinfection and detection routines are prepared and quickly distributed to users

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