Worms Found in HP USB Key

Hewlett-Packard Australia has warned that USB keys transported with some of its Proliant servers are infected with malware, bringing attention to the rising use of USB devices as a method to spread malicious software.

The low danger worms, Fakerecy and SillyFDC, were discovered in a batch of 256MB and 1GB USB keys that was sent with the file servers. It is undetermined how many infected keys, used for installing optional floppy-disc devices to file servers, were distributed. An infected computer in the manufacturing plant is probably cause of the incident.

The trojan distributed is not interpreted as an great threat, due in part to the low amount of estimated users still utilizing floppy disk devices for data storage and that most hackers don't find the computer virus worthwhile.

This is not the first incident of infection to come out of the factory; others have involved digital photo frames and similar products. Anti-virus software, if up to date, should find both of the computer viruses involved in the Proliant USB attack as long the Anti-Virus protection was installed after the floppy device was added to the machine. Disabling auto-run thwarts both Fakerecy and SillyFDC and may be the easier option.

HP's notice, via local security clearing house AUSCert, can be found here: http://www.auscert.org.au/render.html?it=9077. The SANS Institutes's Internet Storm Centre delivers advice on warding off USB malware-related hazard here: http://isc.sans.org/diary.html?storyid=4247.

Hardware devices leaving the factory with malware is growing more common these days, raising the call for for robust Anti-Virus security. For a limited time, you can obtain free internet virus protection.