New ICQ worm spreads like fire

A new worm is targeting ICQ users, but apart from spreading itself by taking control of the ICQ application of the victim to send out more of the same messages and a file transfer request for an executable called snatch.exe, so far the worm does not appear to damage affected computers in any major way.

It seems that the worm is of Russian origin, since the hundreds of reports of infection have mostly been posted on Russian forums and blogs, and the messages that herald the file transfer request are written in that language.

It isn’t surprising, though, that Russian users are targeted first – ICQ is the most used IM application in the country. Softpedia reports that the worm can already be detected by using an AV solution from Russian vendor Kapersky Lab.

Users are urged to be careful and not to accept file transfers from strangers or even from people they know before checking with them whether it’s really them the ones who sent it.