A new worm can spy on users by hijacking their Web cameras, a security firm warned Monday. The Rbot.gr worm -- the latest in a long line of similar worms; one security firm estimates that more than 4,000 variations have appeared -- has the capability of turning Webcams against their owners, said officials at U.K.-based Sophos. . . .
A new worm can spy on users by hijacking their Web cameras, a security firm warned Monday.

The Rbot.gr worm -- the latest in a long line of similar worms; one security firm estimates that more than 4,000 variations have appeared -- has the capability of turning Webcams against their owners, said officials at U.K.-based Sophos.

"More and more hackers are interested in spying on the people they manage to infect," said Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant at Sophos in a statement. "In the workplace, this worm opens up the possibilities of industrial espionage. At home it's equivalent to a Peeping Tom who invades your privacy by peering through your curtains."

Rbot.gr is a multi-threat worm, spreading through a number of Microsoft Windows vulnerabilities -- including those exploited by MSBlast and Sasser -- and through network shares. Once it lands on a Windows PC, it installs a backdoor Trojan horse that can then lead to the planting of password stealers, key loggers, and Webcam hijackers.

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