Anzae/Inzae worm affects all Windows versions after 3.1; Macintosh unaffected

“The Anzae/Inzae mass-mailing worm has its own SMTP mail engine and captures addresses from the infected machine. It affects all versions of Windows after 3.1 but not UNIX/Linux or Macintosh systems. In addition to posing a possible denial of service threat to servers targeted by the flood of messages, the Anaze/Inzae payload will also attempt to delete a number of files on the infected system. The subject of the message, along with the size and name of the infected attachment vary so these can’t be used to spot the malware attack. The address will, of course, be spoofed,’ VirusThreatCenter.com reports.

More info here.

MacDailyNews Take: For our Windows-only friends, information about smoothly adding a safe, secure, powerful, and fun Mac OS X machine to your computing arsenal can be found here.

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16 Comments

  1. Ran a few anti-virus and Anti-spyware programs on my father’s Windows PC over Christmas–found over 200 pieces of spyware, a couple of viruses, worms, and trojan horses. He’s had the computer for only a month! Gives you an idea of how vulnerable Windows is.

  2. Suicidal Gingerbread Man: most are just cookies.
    Download Firefox and Thunderbird instead of Internet Explorer and Outlook and he will no longer have those type problems on his PC.

  3. KEEP THESE STORIES COMING! I hope that we all make a habit of promoting the Mac to our friends & colleagues–without being excessive about it, of course. These stories help do that.
    And besides, as erk pointed out, they always bring a smile to my face too! (Those not interested can skip over these stories easily enough.)

  4. I spoke to a an Mac IT guy today at work and he has the accurate figures on no of virui for mac an windows:

    Windows = 65,000 variations
    Mac (OS X) = 40 (most NOT virus that effect OS X but act as trojans for windows)

    All the more reason to buy that Mac now!!!

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