'Naked Wife' Virus Strips Computers
March 7, 2001 — -- A computer virus posing as an animation feature has hit dozens of offices — luring victims with the impression they will see a "naked wife," but instead stripping bare their Windows operating systems.
However, anti-virus experts said today the bug — which may have originated in Brazil — appears under control as corporations quickly install anti-virus software to block it, and as word-of-mouth spreads among home users.
"I don't think we're going to see very much more of it." said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos Anti-Virus. "It's nothing like as large or as widespread as the Anna Kournikova virus … or the Love Bug" — two other recent widespread viruses that played upon human impulses of desire and sexuality.
Nevertheless, it is a major virus that caused significant damage, experts said. Computer Associates had reports of at least 20 to 30 cases. McAfee had reports of nearly 20 more. And Sophos received word of a dozen-or-so "naked wife" attacks on computer networks worldwide, Cluley said.
Tease Leaves Users Jilted
To people affected, the virus causes huge problems, leaving users unable to boot up or use their Windows operating systems.
"The only way to get the system back to an operational state is to re-install" Windows, according to Symantec.com, an anti-virus site.
According to anti-virus companies, the "naked wife" virus arrives with the subject line, "Fw: Naked Wife," the message, "My wife never look like that! ;-)," and an attachment called "NakedWife.exe."
But don't be tempted by the come-on, even if it comes from someone you know, anti-virus experts say. Simply delete the e-mail from your computer without opening any attachment.
"What we have to kill off is the bug in people's brains that makes them click on these attachments without thinking," Cluley said.
The e-mail containing the virus may be signed by a sender the user knows, because when recipients using Microsoft Outlook attempt to open NakedWife.exe, the virus forwards the naked wife e-mail to everybody in the user's address book.
The virus then attacks the computer of the person opening the attachment, attempting to destroy all .bmp, .com, .dll, .exe, .ini and .log files in the WINDOWS and WINDOWS/SYSTEM directories, according to the anti-virus site, McAfee.com.
To add insult to injury, users who try to access "help" through a flash window opened by the virus are likely to get the message, "You are now F***ED. (c) 2001 by BGK (Bill Gates Killer)."
Animation Company ‘Outraged,’ Vows to Prosecute
As the virus does its work, it displays the logo of JibJab.com, a Brooklyn-based Web site that creates and distributes animation for the Internet. The JibJab animations commonly are passed by e-mail among Web animation aficionados, making the ruse that much more complete, according to an official at JibJab.
"You think you're about to watch a JibJab animation, but what you're actually doing is downloading the virus," said John Nugent, vice president of production for JibJab Media Inc.
But, he added, JibJab actually had no intentional role in distributing the virus, and hopes to prosecute the virus creator for trademark infringement.
"We're outraged," Nugent said. "Hopefully, they'll catch the guy, and we have lawyers who'll deal with the situation."