Slashdot Mirror
First Mobile Phone Virus Discovered
CHaN_316 writes "News.com.au is running an article about the First Mobile Phone Virus Discovered. The virus 'called Cabir - appears to have been developed by an international group specialising in creating viruses which try to show "that no technology is reliable and safe from their attacks"... until now it has had no harmful effect.' Cabir infects the Symbian operating system, and spreads via bluetooth. Great... lets see when we can download the world's first mobile phone anti-virus!"
Go ahead, answer it. I dare you!
I think I think, therefore I think I am.
... dupe dupe. dupe of url, url, url.
I for one welcome our viral cellular overlords.
{ring ring}
You've been haxx0red!
In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
...the phone could have been running Windows! Of course, then the first cell phone virus would have occurred ages ago...
...first mobile phone virus dupe story!
You must think in Russian.
Here it comes, SMS spam offering downloadable anti-virus software!
Drill baby drill - on Mars
So I just need to stay 15 feet away from everyone and I should be fine.
Kinda like a real virus.
This is why I love my Nokia 3410. It's too simple to get easily hacked.
Sometimes progress is not an advantage.
SCREW THE ADS! http://adblock.mozdev.org/ Proud user of teh Fox of Fire - Registered Linux User #289618
Umm was this duped less than 12 hours ago?
Worm Developed for Nokia Series-60 Phones
Sunday you're Thinking Different, Monday you're a huge tool, paying too much and waiting to think like everyone else.
Ok, I would maybe accept the odd one or two dupes, but not if the same story has appeared only a few hours earlier.
Anyway, please note this virus is relatively benign, just spreadign itself and some grafiti.
excitingthingstodo.blogspot.com
this virus has an unknown effect: /. over and over! ;)
it submits stories to
Because embarrassments like this only give ammunition to the trolls.
Eh, why not, I've got some karma to burn...
I saw this was a dupe when it was "In The Mysterious Future" and emailed daddypants, but it *STILL* got posted. WTF??
This has already been reported earlier today.
The worm spreads through the BlueTooth interface
and requires to be run by a human after receiving.
Quick, close port 80!
Obliteracy: Words with explosions
that no technology is reliable and safe from their attacks
Inherent in society is a certain bit of stupidity, mixed with skill, it's a dangerous and irritating rash that itches on the skin of the sane.
Why does this need to be pointed out? Ohh, right, because asshats such as these guys or others will write viruses that will exploit this weakness just because they can. Ahh yes, personal entertainment at the expense of others, it's our God given right!
I'm really sick of this. Not only the tard that write the real viruses and whatnot, but that leads to the fact that there can be dipshits such as these guys to say "ohh look world, here's a vulnerability." Do they feel they're helping anyone any more than the writers of the actual malicious code?
Presently here, but not there.
This duplicate story gets accepted and posted, while my story about Akamai claiming they got attacked gets rejected... sigh...
Hmmm.
And this is after subscribers email Dupe! notices!
That's what they get for not implementing Linux on their hardware. Everyone knows Linux is teh bomb, and that it is immune to virii due to the fact that Linus smiled upon it. When will they learn? Corporate, pointy-headed drones, they are, incapable of seeing the truth even when it smacks them in their pasty managerial conformist greed-centric open-source hating faces.
Mod down people who tell people how to mod in their sigs
Since this is a dupe, and we are (mostly) intelligent people...how about we just start a new topic? Here:
The Holy Roman Empire was neither Holy nor Roman. Discuss.
Update: 06/15 15:15 GMT by M: You may remember we mentioned this earlier today.
Helpfully yours
*bow*
An Indian-American Hindu committed to non-violent thought/speech/action alarmed by the global explosion of radical Islam
For everyone that just started checking /. at 4:00 pm. this article was posted at 9:04 am. this morning.
Morning News.
Maybe we should start a game like Survivor, and keep track of the editors dupe's. First editor to 5 is off the island... That should be a good 4 days entertainment
"Nimis exaltatus rex sedet in vertice - caveat ruinam!"
You know, we could just be happy using mobile phones as mobile phones, instead of appliances with bluetooth connectivity, internet browsers, and so on. Hell, I can't even get any ring tones on my phone that don't sound stupid. Hell, its hard enough keeping the damn thing from crashing and freezing every 4 months. Best wireless network my ass, verizon!
I wanted to be the first to say that this is the second phone virus. I then would have had fun saying that Michael reads slashdot on his phone, which is why he didn't see the first story. However, all I get to do is say "Me Too". Brings me right back to the early 90's.
So... adding a little danger to the thrills of Unprotected Toothing...
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
Wasn't there a case with a mobile phone virus a couple years ago in Europe? It would spread when you called someone, or something like that. I'm really sure this isn't the first virus.
Your ad here.
I guess they should consider doing something about the bluetooth system. It seems to be a serious security threat. Think about how bad things can happen and spread around without drawing anybosy's attention.
Sometime we'll probably be seing spy-worms around.
Great! In the future moms won't tell you to stay away from public toilets and murky places because you can get STDs. Now you can get PTDs as well x.x;
GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
Not nearly as bad as the virus I got from that public pay phone!
That shanker lasted a week!
It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. -Frederick Douglass
I'll believe that when they infect my refrigerator. Oops, looks like they already got that week-old bottle of milk...darn...
Have you read my blog lately?
This is the first report!"
I know, I know. It is confusing and complicated. I myself didn't believe this was a dupe until I read the 65th post saying it was. To be honest, even then I was a little skeptical. So to be sure I read the next 20 posts. Sure enough they all agreed with the other 65 people: The story is a dupe.
But for some reason, I still wasn't 100% convinced. To be super sure, I took a strole down to my crime lab and ran a few tests. The results?
The framerate on Quake 3 is better when using the Radeon 9800 Pro compared to using a Voodoo 2.
I realized that these benchmark tests were getting me nowhere, so I quickly ran outside and stopped a few people on the street. After explaining the situation on slashdot, 3 people quickly walked away, 2 spit on me, and the last guy asked me for change so he could take the bus. I gave him 35 cents.
At this point I started panicing, as time is running out. I ran back inside read and yesterday's penny-arcade. What an eye opener... it dawned on me: NO ONE FUCKING CARES IF THIS STORY IS A DUPE. JESUS CHRIST, LEAVE IT ALONE AND MOVE ONTO THE NEXT STORY.
That is all.
-Mark
Dovie'andi se tovya sagain.
How often does that happen????
--D Score: -1 Redundant or +1 funny, I don't care.
...the first story is still at the front page...
Cheers,
RoadkillBunny
is the one that does a DOS on /. every time it infects a new phone.
Religous speak to God. Insane are spoken to by God. When all shut up, one can finally hear Shostakovich in peace
I mean, really does anyone outside LA, even remotely admires the current Lakers ?
Note to moderators :- Moderating a post as "OffTopic" in a dupe story is rather "redundunt".
for the last time people, I am "frodo from middle eaRTH", not "middle eaST".
Bluetooth being insecure isn't exactly news (or repeated news, for that matter). A lot of the first generation blue tooth phones had Bluetooth on by default. A friend of mine used to pull all sorts of malicious crap with a Nokia N-Gage. He would just sit in a busy mall hacking away at anyone who sits in the food court. If you have a blue tooth phone with no off setting get a replacement. ;)
A mobile phone virus that infects the N-Gage Nokia models has disabled all N-Gage models across the US.
8 users are affected and "devastated" by the attack.
Click here for a free picture of an iPod!
Is there some way we can work a random, irrelevant Microsoft bash into this discussion about viruses?
Aren't viruses created and implemented rather than just being discovered wrecking havoc on phones?
...an international group specialising in creating viruses which try to show "that no technology is reliable and safe from their attacks"
How can you make a claim like that when your most notable accomplishment is making a bunch of cell phones display an obscure word? Wipe clean my credit card debt or take out the IRS databases and then I'll agree with you on what l33t h4X0rs you are.
First Post on a DUPE story can't possibly be considered a legitmate First Post, can it?!!!
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Duplicate posts by editor, according to a quick unscientific search on Google (site:slashdot.org dupe "posted by $name"):
timothy - 114
michael - 104
CmdrTaco - 80
Hemos - 32
CowboyNeal - 22
pudge - 12
If your comment title says 'Re: Foo', I'm not likely to read it.
not only is it a dupe, it's a dupe of an article about 6-7 stories down on the front page
Sorry for sounding like too much of a novice here, but I've been trying to find sites with information about programming applications for mobile phones that take advantage of the bluetooth functioin. No, I am not interested in making a virus! Does anybody know what the best sites are? What kind of programming language and development environment do they require? Can you use Java to make applications that work on all mobile phones with bluetooth? I'm surprised that bluetooth viruses are being created when I can't even find any comprehensive information about programming for bluetooth mobile phones.
Remember, a kitten dies everytime you dupe a story !
Go grab those torrents.
Can you hack me now? ...
Good!
"Wow, you're like some kind of superhero able to ward off happiness and success at every turn."
-- Ryan Stiles
And yes... 85% of sms spam will come from infected windows cellphones.
Peter
Downsize DC Today!
Michael dupes a Taco post.
Professional Politicians are not the solution, they ARE the problem.
... The first cell phone virus, and also the first slashdot dupe about a cell phone virus! What a day of firsts!
This space for rent, inquire within.
...why, oh, why, oh WHY does everything that ought to be a simple, functional device end up as a bloated mass of featuritis with a clunky user interface, a 250-page manual... and the ability to accept and automatically execute executable content?
There is no rationale reason whatsoever why a cell phone needs to be susceptible to viruses.
What next? Digital cameras that are capable of updating their firmware by photographing the screen of the vendor's website... that will be infested by virus code which somebody smuggles onto the Jumbotron screen at a football game?
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
At least when it comes to spreading, this virus would resemble a real virus more closely.. You have to be in "bluetooth range" to get infected..
"It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
since there are a variety of different phone operating systems there shouldn't be any viruses that completely overwhelm phones like with windows/outlook. i'm not worried.
http://www.rustyrazorblade.com
...if any of the /. admins actually read /.?
Got time? Spend some of it coding or testing
makes me glad I'm still using my old analog phone.
Well, maybe using isn't the right word.
Karma: Negative (Mostly affected by dorm trolling)
Please mod parent to +5, Ancient Music.
Just in case the younguns missed the reference.
The first mobile phone virus was dis- What? Oh, wow, redundancy rocks!
Here it comes, SMS spam offering downloadable anti-virus software!
The first email spam I got - 'WAY back when - was an offer selling bulk mailing software and an address list.
"Oh, oh!" thought I. "Here comes the junkmail!"
(THAT was the understatement of the digital age, wasn't it? B-( )
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
Next thing you know, you'll need a virus blocker for your genitals to avoid downloading a virus while having sexual intercourse.
Oh, wait...
Probably, Linux users and ranters will say, see you should have gone with an embedded linux instead of symbian. Symbian users will say, yeh but at least ours works out of the box, and it will go on, just as the original fight Windows Vs Linux, it will now be Symbian and Windows Vs Linux.
why? oh why? WHY!? Is there enough time to put something in the "from the 'x' dept" underneath the title, but no time to look on the right or SCROLL DOWN! and see the original story?
He probably missed it because the previous story was under "security" and this one under "handhelds".
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
THIS one - "Worm Developed for Nokia Series-60 Phones" - on the SAME FRAGGIN' FRONT PAGE???!!!
/. oblivious as usual...
/. is now PART of the TIA! That would explain it all...
Yoo-hoo, editors!
LEAVE OFF THE FRAGGIN' POT AND PAY ATTENTION!!!!
Meanwhile, the Total Information Awareness program rolls on with
Oh, wait, I guess
Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
This is why I just want a phone that sends and receives calls, checks voicemail, and stores numbers. Keeping time is optional as long as I know when any voicemails were left. My cell phone is for direct personal communication. Anything else, and I'm not interested. (Of course, I wasn't interested in cell phones until just last December.)
We finally need Telephone Sanitizers!!
I though Windows Mobile was the first cellphone virus.
Doctors don't diagnose themselves, Hairdressers don't cut their own hair, bus drivers take the car to work, the people at the benefits office got jobs. Surely reporters not reading their own stories is nothing to be suprised about. /me opens the morning newspaper and counts the spelling errors and dupe posts in a paid for newspaper. Neither do editors in "respectable" news outlets it seems.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
What about the good old Commodore 64? Maybe you could have a problem if they could write a program to overwrite your GEOS boot disk, but that disk is usually write protected, and the C-64 always boots from a unchanging ROM chip at startup.
Therefore, any company that's truly concerned about security should put all of it's most important applications on a C-64 cluster.
Symbian (and MSFT once they get their act together) will almost certainly bring baaaaad virii to the phone networks. I have done a lot of work with Symbian phones, and SMS but I'm not a script kiddie/virus guy, but I'm gonna tell ya how you SHOULD have done this. (give me some props if you actually do it).
There was(is) a bug on some of the US based sms GSM handsets (may be worse, but I only know the US).... The bug was that sending a malformed binary SMS message to a specific SMSC would hang the queue for the device.... you just wouldn't get any more SMS messages to your phone (until they went in and poked it out by hand)
You should have exploited the fact that all phones now use SMS, and most have either Symbian or Java... Written a propagation routine that read the addy book, propogated to all of those, and then sent the sender a malformed message of death!
The user would get a message from his buddy saying "install", and after he did, he;d be fucked before he could stop it/call his friends. MUCH higher propagation levels no?
Second better plan to the one they did:
Trogan a java game (since you can get at the code so easy)... put up some services on various operator networks.... like Voda Live, or the 88k different ringtone providers etc... and then just have all infected phones text their premium rate servies all day long.
Not my game plan personally, but IT IS COMING! all the things I said today can happen TODAY!
-------- I dig Mobile Phones
Well damn if that's not amazing.
My hat's off to these brave pioneers, searching for viruses in the wilds of the Yukon. (Or is it the Netherlands?) I imagine it must have been like the guy who found the first dinosaur skeleton. All these hecklers saying they don't exaist, then BOOM justification for all that research money spent digging through centuries of sediment.
No, now really. Isn't the proper term something more like "released," "written," or perhaps "invented?"
± 29 dB
i have been searching for a good reason to embrace bluetooth... and lo... it has appeared unto me on a tortilla in mexico no less... :P