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A new online threat – The Clampi Virus

By Andrew Redfern @ 2nd October 2009 3:52 pm

A highly sophisticated new Trojan virus is currently spreading from the US to Britain. The Clampi virus infects computers when users visit certain websites that host a malicious code. This allows access to your computer for cyber criminals who will seek to capture sensitive information such as online banking log-in details.

Experts have warned this new Trojan is one of the biggest threats to anybody who uses a Microsoft Windows operating system. Only computers running Microsoft Windows have been infected up to now and small and medium-sized businesses seem under particular risk of attack once infected. Investigators have found that the range of sites that Clampi is monitoring included banks, credit card companies, online casinos, retail sites, mortgage lenders and even government sites. Last month, attackers placed a virus in an advert on the website of The New York Times!

The virus has already spread across hundreds of thousands of computers in the US and is now being detected in Britain. Orla Cox, from Symantec, an online security company, told The Times: The first big wave was in the US in July, but it is spreading around the world, particularly English-language countries. We have seen samples of it targeting UK high street banks. There is potential for another wave to come.”

How to protect yourself against the Clampi Virus

1 – Make sure you are running antivirus software such as and a firewall on your computer.

2 – Install any critical updates and security patches for your operating system, all the latest bug fixes and patches are available from the Microsoft website.

3 – If you’re using a Wi-Fi network, ensure it is password protected and secure to prevent people hacking into your network.

4 – Consider using a separate account from your current account for online shopping. If you use a Credit Card ensure that it is a pre-paid card so if anybody does gain access to your details then the amount of money then can spend is restricted.

5 – When surfing the internet, do not click on any suspicious links, especially in emails from unknown senders.

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