Facebook viruses stalk online users

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By Emley Kerry

Have you received a Facebook message lately from someone you haven't talked to in a while? You are pleasantly surprised, and then you open the message to find a link to a Web site with a strange ending, like .im. Word of advice: don't open it - it is a Facebook virus.

The "Koobface" virus has been making rounds on Facebook and other social networking Web sites, including Twitter and MySpace through messages containing links to phony Web sites.

In one form of the virus, clicking the URL takes the user to a supposed video, and "Koobface" prompts the user to update Flash Player before the video can be displayed. The virus then piggybacks on the downloaded "flash_player.exe" file.

Before Facebook blocked the URLs, the links could also direct the user to a fake Facebook login page. According to All Facebook blog, after entering your username and password, the Koobface "phishermen" steal your login information, sign into Facebook, change your password, and send the same message en masse to a number of your friends.

According to the Kapersky Lab, an antivirus organization working closely with Facebook, "the worms transform victim machines into zombie computers to form botnets."

LSU sociology student Phillip Lafleur was the recent victim of Facebook hacking. Messages containing links to phishing sites were then sent to a number of his friends from his stolen Facebook account.

Lafleur believes that his information was stolen through a Facebook application. "If I were to guess, it would be one of the many 'quiz' applications you can add nowadays. Probably the 'How long will you live in a fight with Chuck Norris' one. I didn't realize part of the quiz would be Mr. Norris actually roundhouse-kicking my sense of privacy. I should read the fine print next time," said Lafleur.

One irate Facebook user in Florida went so far as to sue the social networking Web site for failing to protect him and other users from viruses adequately. According to CNET News, Theodore Karantsalis, an activist and librarian, filed a civil lawsuit seeking $70.50 from Facebook, but he later dropped the suit on the stipulation that he and the Facebook admins "friended" each other and "poked" each other periodically.

Facebook does not claim responsibility and is not liable for any damages caused via the Web site. "We try to keep Facebook up, bug-free, and safe, but you use it at your own risk," said a Facebook statement on the Web site. "We do not guarantee that Facebook will be safe or secure."

Lafleur is unsettled about what happened to him, but he understands that the blame does not lie with Facebook.

"Considering they're owned and operated privately, and the fact Facebook is free, I doubt they're worried about it. Plus, if it was an outside application, they made sure the fault was placed on me with the 'Allow application to access your account information' prompt screen," explained Lafleur.

However, Facebook does offer advice on how to protect your account's security. Facebook's security page advises users who have received spam messages sent from a friend's account to contact the friend to inform him, and "warn those who received the spam not to click on it, and to delete it from their Walls and Inboxes immediately."

The recipients of Lafleur's messages did not follow these steps. He only received one one-word message back from a friend. "One guy [wrote back] and I quote: 'Word.' It almost made it all worth it," said Lafleur.

Lafleur deleted all applications and changed his passwords on his Facebook account and the email account tied to it to protect himself from further attacks. If spam has been sent from your account, Facebook recommends a virus scan and offers links to free scanners at facebook.com/security.

So unless you want to become part of the soulless Facebook zombie army, protect your Internet security. Use common sense when giving out your login information, and although you might be happy to receive that random Facebook message from a childhood friend or a one-time hook-up you haven't spoken to a long time, do not click on the odd link in the message.

Originally Published: Issue 803 - June 10, 2009

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