New Year worm disguised in celebratory e-mail

As much of a sign of the new year as the big ball in New York City is the sighting of the first spread of a computer worm. In this case, it hit users in the form of an e-mail with the subject line "Happy New Year!"

The e-mail contains an attachment, postcard.exe, which, if opened, shuts down the computer's security system, allowing for easy attacks from hackers. It will also attempt to automatically send the virus to other users.

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Mark Raby
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Mark Raby is a freelance writer for Tom's Hardware, covering a wide range of topics, from video game reviews to detailed analyses of computer processors.