A new computer virus that spreads using e-mail messages is breaking records for new infections set by the last major e-mail worm, Sobig.F, according to leading antivirus software companies and e-mail security firms.
Infected e-mail messages carrying the Mydoom virus, also known as “Shimgapi” and “Novarg,” have been intercepted from over 142 countries and now account for one in every 12 e-mail messages, according to Mark Sunner, chief technology officer at e-mail security company MessageLabs Inc.
That surpasses the Sobig.F virus record, which appeared last August and, at its peak, was found in one of every 17 messages intercepted by MessageLabs, he said.
Since first detecting the new virus at 1:00 PM GMT on Monday, MessageLabs intercepted almost 1 million infected e-mail messages carrying the virus, Sunner said.
The virus has “followed the sun,” hitting hard in the U.S. and Canada late on Monday, then working its way through Asia and Europe on Tuesday, he said.
F-Secure Corp. of Helsinki estimates that around 100,000 computers have been infected with Mydoom so far, said Mikko Hypp