The Hottest Gadget, The Newest Virus
Something new to keep gadget freaks awake at night: plug that new toy into your computer and you may be infecting your computer with a virus.
Recent cases reviewed by The Associated Press include some of the most widely used tech devices: Apple iPods, digital picture frames sold by Target and Best Buy stores, and TomTom navigation gear.
In most cases, Chinese factories — where many companies have turned to keep prices low — are the source.
So far, the virus problem appears to come from lax quality control, perhaps a careless worker plugging an infected music player into a factory computer used for testing, rather than organized sabotage by hackers or the Chinese factories.
It's the digital equivalent of the recent series of tainted products traced to China, including toxic toothpaste, poisonous pet food and toy trains coated in lead paint.
But sloppiness is the simplest explanation, not the only one.
If a virus is introduced at an earlier stage of production, by a corrupt employee or a hacker when software is uploaded to the gadget, then the problems could be far more serious and widespread.
The solution, at least for now, is to have an antivirus program that is completely up to date. Before you plug in the new toy, of course. Particularly dangerous is the possibility of infecting your system with a virus that steals passwords.
Sleep tight, gadget lovers.
Geek Stuff | Gaius Thursday, 13 March , 2008
By martian, Friday, 14 March , 2008 @ 7:52 am
I would not rule out deliberate sabotage on the part of the Chinese government? Think I’m paranoid? Possibly, but I have seen direct instances that give one pause. For example, a person I know very well works in a defense related industry (no, I’m not going to give any more specifics than that - security issues). Their company’s computer system was hacked and sensitive defense related files were stolen. The hack was traced directly to a Chinese government intelligence service front company.
The Chinese are not our friends. They see us as their main competition for pre-emminence on the world stage and they are actively working to undermine us in any way they can. Loading viruses in random computer peripherals that could end up being connected to virtually any computer in America by a careless or unwitting person is just the kind of problem espionage types love to initiate.
By crosspatch, Friday, 14 March , 2008 @ 12:26 pm
I would look not so much on the device as on the driver disk that often comes with it. That is where the greater threat is.A computer is generally not going to "run" data on a camera. But you will run programs from the disk that it comes with.
By Steev, Friday, 14 March , 2008 @ 5:03 pm
The iPod issue that the article ref’s was a one time occurrence back in 2006. Perhaps if windows weren’t such a crappy OS we wouldn’t have to worry (as much).
From Apple.com, Tuesday, October 17, 2006:
We recently discovered that a small number - less than 1% - of the Video iPods available for purchase after September 12, 2006 left our contract manufacturer carrying the Windows RavMonE.exe virus. This known virus affects only Windows computers, and up to date anti-virus software which is included with most Windows computers should detect and remove it. So far we have seen less than 25 reports concerning this problem. The iPod nano, iPod shuffle and Mac OS X are not affected, and all Video iPods now shipping are virus free. As you might imagine, we are upset at Windows for not being more hardy against such viruses, and even more upset with ourselves for not catching it.
How to remove the Windows virus
RavMonE.exe is a known Windows virus and up to date anti-virus software using the default settings should detect and remove it. If you do not have anti-virus software on your Windows computer, we recommend that you install one of the many available programs. Here are a few trial programs that can remove this Windows virus which you can download free of charge:
• Microsoft Live OneCare Safety Scanner - free application
• Microsoft Live OneCare - 90 day trial version
• McAfee - 30 day trial version
• Symantec Norton Anti-Virus - 30 day trial version
After installing an anti-virus application, you should attach your Video iPod to your Windows computer and run the anti-virus program. If your Windows system is infected with this virus, an alert will be triggered and inform you that the virus has been detected and either quarantined or removed. You should then use iTunes 7 to easily restore the software on your newly purchased Video iPod.
Because this Windows virus propagates via mass storage devices, we recommend that you scan any mass storage devices that you have recently attached to your Windows computers such as external hard drives, digital cameras with removable media, and USB flash drives.
While this Windows virus does not affect Mac OS X or the iPod itself, Mac customers can use iTunes 7 to easily restore the software on their newly purchased Video iPod to ensure that it does not carry this Windows virus. The Video iPod can then be used on a Windows computer without concern.