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Copyright © 2006 Poker News
HEADLINE:
Trojan Horse Threat Hits Poker Networks
Body:
Online poker players
are on high alert today as it emerged a possible trojan horse
computer virus could have infected hundreds of machines. The security
of those unlucky enough to be infected is very likely to have
been compromised.
Only last week, Ladbrokes Poker were quick to reassure their
poker players after it was alleged one of their employees was
accused of stealing a massive $30,000,000 from punters accounts.
Players alleged a "pop-up" message from Ladbrokes warned
them of the theft but then stated accounts are "ok".
Today, Betfair Poker released a statement on the back of influx
of trojan horse virus attacks to hit the Cryptologic network.
Players were advised by a mystery user to visit the BBC website
in regards to an employee fraud. Upon loading the site, it was
apparent to many players that this was not the BBC's website.
The savvy amongst the surfers quickly closed their browser windows.
However, a downloadable .exe file was easily available. It is
believed this file was a trojan horse virus.
A trojan horse allows remote access to machines online. With
poker players financial
information, amongst other things! freely available to the trojan
horse owner, the prospect of mass fraud becomes a frightening
reality.
Betfair quickly reassured their customers in a statement by saying:
"An internet hoax directing internet users to a bogus BBC
site, purporting to be a story about a Betfair scam contained
links to a virus. While the story was malicious and entirely untrue,
some links downloaded a “Trojan Horse”, a program
potentially enabling a hacker to access a victim’s computer.
The potential consequences of a Trojan Horse are serious. A hacker
can gain access to sensitive information from an infected computer,
potentially tracking keystrokes and gaining personal banking or
credit card information.
If you think you may have been a victim of this hoax, we urge
you to contact your security software vendor for assistance.
We would like to confirm this story has nothing to do with Betfair
or the BBC, and encourage Betfair members to take all precautions
when online to open links only from trusted sources. We also recommend
you regularly scan your computer for viruses, Trojans and malicious
software."
UK Poker News advises all of our readers to never download or
install any suspect files and to adhere to the Betfair information
above regarding the security of their machines.
Please also see our information on Online
Poker Security
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