Remembering Michael Jackson is a virus

SINGAPORE:Michael Jackson is gone, leaving behind his legacy of music, a controversial life and a huge liability. Since everything pertaining to eternal MJ is news, cyber criminals are finding it easy to make hay in the name of the legendary pop star.

Computer security firm Sophos recently issued a warning about an Internet virus transmitted from an email claiming to contain songs and photos of the controversial pop legend.

The email comes from an ID, "sarah@michaeljackson.com", with the subject "Remembering Michael Jackson" and an attached file: Michael songs and pictures.zip, Sophos said in a statement.

The email says that the attached ZIP file contains secret songs and photos of Michael Jackson. Sophos warned computer users against opening the attachment.

"By opening the attachment, computer users are exposed to infection. Once infected, a computer will begin automatically spreading the worm on to other Internet users," it said.

“Besides spreading via email, the malware is also capable of spreading as an Autorun component on USB memory sticks (an increasingly common trend for malware as use of these devices has become more and more popular), Sophos added.

This is not for the first time that Jackson's name is being exploited by the cyber criminals. Even during his lifetime, he was not immune from having his name exploited by hackers.

For instance, in 2004, a Trojan horse was spammed out claiming to contain photographic evidence of Jackson abusing a young boy, said Sophos. The following year a malware campaign was spammed out claiming to contain breaking news that the music superstar had committed suicide.

And earlier this year, scammers had managed to advertise their offers on Jackson's official website promoting his (now cancelled) concerts at the O2 in London.

So, if you are a Micheal Jackson lover, don't fall victim to a malware attack in the name of remembrance.

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