Digital Picture Frames Infected by Trojan Viruses

CR0WTR0B0T writes "The San Francisco Chronicle is running a story on viruses loaded into digital picture frames, similar to the ones we discussed at the end of last year. The difference is in the virus used: 'The authors of the new Trojan Horse are well-funded professionals whose malware has 'specific designs to capture something and not leave traces ... This would be a nuclear bomb of malware.' Apparently, a number of regular folks have hooked them up to their home computer and loaded the virus. And if you think you're too smart to be fooled, apparently the Anti-Virus software makers have not caught up to the threat quite yet."

Well...

[ledow]

- Run an OS that does not automatically try to mount devices, without user interaction.
- Run an OS that does not execute programs on devices once mounted, without user interaction but preferably not at all. (Autorun, I'm looking at you)

Although what doesn't seem to mentioned specifically is if the viruses are contained on the memory of the frames themselves (i.e. just like any other removeable drive) or whether they are on some sort of driver/bundle CD. It does seem to hint that it means the device itself, which begs the question how is it getting executed? Is there a setup.exe that autoruns like on certain brands of USB drive (DUMB IDEA OF THE CENTURY)? Are there infected data files like JPEG's that just so happen to allow execution of their code on certain OS's? Is there an actual executable that isn't supposed to be on there at all that autoruns or waits for the user to double-click it?

Either way, it's hardly a brilliant way to spread and only a dozen or so people seem to have been affected out of whichever country it's talking about (presumably the US). That sounds more like they had the virus already and it made its way onto their digital photo frames when they first connected them. Yes, it's a worry that malicious code could make its way onto a consumer device at the factory, but more at fault here are the OS and the user practices - we had all this back in the 80's/90's... don't take floppies off people you don't trust without scanning them first. Have we seriously come full-circle to the same dumb, preventable "problem"?

Nuclear bomb of malware?

[clarkkent09]

How many people does the author think use those silly picture frames?

Put the pieces together

[DNS-and-BIND]

1. The authors of the new Trojan Horse are well-funded professionals whose malware has "specific designs to capture something and not leave traces,"

2. Computer Associates has traced the Trojan to a specific group in China

3. It spreads by USB drives

4. "It is a nasty worm that has a great deal of intelligence,"

Follow the money. My money's on an espionage tool from the Chinese government or its affiliated corporations. Let the flaming begin...I said "China" and "espionage" in the same sentence, I'm sure folks out there would like to lynch me just for even suggesting that there is such a laughable concept as espionage, or bash me for so-called China-bashing (which includes any criticism of China except those for human rights, that's OK).

ALERT: People at SANS, incoming CHAIRS!

[SmallFurryCreature]

Deborah Hale at SANS suggested that PC users find friends with Macintosh or Linux machines and have them check for malware before plugging any device into a PC.

Oh boy, you gotta love that bit. Amusing as the suggestion that Mac's and Linux "machines" are not PC's may be, do you realize just how damning of MS software this is? SANS, a security organisations basically says that if you don't trust a piece of hardware, then it is okay to plug it into a mac or linux machine, to test wether it is safe to plug it into a windows pc.

Is this like those warnings on tv, kids do not try this, if you want to do this experiment, get an adult to help you. Kids do not use windows blindly, if you do wish to add a new device, get someone with a real OS to help you out.

Oh well, to all the windows using women out there, remember, the standard rate for getting a guy to help you out is ONE blowjob. Please form an orderly cue.

You really just got to wonder what they were ....

[3seas]

....thinking.

Don't virus writers have better thens to do?

Unless they are vested in anti-virus software, whats teh point other than just causing countless people problems.

Re:You really just got to wonder what they were ..

[mlts]

It is a solid revenue stream. If malware succeeds in installing, there is profit to be made from identity theft, theft of CD keys from games, grabbing virtual assets like MMO accounts and selling them (or using the account for EULA-breaking items until the account is permanently banned), blackmail, extortion, botnet making, spam zombies, and many other nasty things

Virus writing is highly profitable, each second a piece of malware goes unstopped on a machine is a second that the machine can continue to spew spam, spy on an internal network, or be a part of a DDoS attack.

Re:Well...

[Anonymous Coward]

- Run an OS that does not automatically try to mount devices, without user interaction.

And this would help HOW? Maybe it'd allow certain wiseguys to point at and blame the user for mounting the volumne in question - but ordinary users who just want to put pictures on their frame would *have* to mount it it, and it doesn't matter whether you have to click or whether it happens automatically. In fact, given that you'll likely only ever plug in the frame when you actually do want to access it, automounting seems like a good idea that does save you work in this case.

Automatically running code without the user asking for it is another issue, of course - that is a colossally stupid idea indeed, yes.

Re:Well...

[CR0WTR0B0T]

The article is saying that these were found to be infected at the point of purchase. These picture frames are designed to be user friendly and will hook up via USB cable and scan your PC for your digital media. They have software loaded on them to play pictures, AVI, and for some odd reason MP3s. The real issue here is the Ma and Pa who bought their new PC at BestBuy to look at pictures of their grandkids and surf the web are at risk. Even the PC already loaded with anti-virus software isn't protected. As soon as they hook up the frame to start downloading the pictures, the virus is activated. Good thing is this round steals someone's online gaming passwords (WOW?), which likely won't affect many since hardcore gamers aren't likely to use digital picture frames. Next round could be mining for TurboTax information or passwords to play Global Thermonuclear War with WOPR [wikipedia.org].

Network Virus Innoculation

[Doc Ruby]

Since there are now so many network devices in the wild without an admin user interface, and without even an admin user (except maybe some $5 an hour warranty phone tech support dweeb), the wild needs an easy way to innoculate entire network domains against viruses. We should learn from nature how to keep viruses under control. In 5-10 years, practically every human will have 1-100 infectable devices, many of them in the critical path for their convenience, work, and even human health, so we've got to get this under wraps with that deployment explosion on the horizon.

I should be able to subscribe to an antivirus site that distributes inoculation viruses, just like in nature. Install it on my home/office server, and it gets updates which attack my own hosts the same way as the enemy virus does in the wild. But its attack payload is removed, replaced with a payload that patches the infected host against the attack virus. The home server should also scan the network's devices for other signs that they're already infected, including emailing me with instructions how to inspect each device for UI signs that it's infected with the attack vir And periodic (daily/weekly/etc) reports of "health status". When it detects a host, like a networked picture frame, that seems to be already infected but can't be autopatched, it can recommend further manual steps if possible, including wiping the host's storage if that will work. Or just recommend unplugging and throwing away a doomed host, perhaps with a mail-in "thorough treatment" by the antivirus vendor experts, if there's a chance to recover data and the device. Or just throw away a hopeless device.

There's a lot of talk lately about "good worms" which would cruise the Net just like "bad worms", but patch instead of infect. Since "patch vs infect" is in the eye of the human operator, that unsupervised release into the wild can easily go wrong. But this kind of managed release in each LAN, rather than just over the entire WAN (Internet), leaves the "doctor virus" compartmentalized - don't let it route between LAN segments. And more importantly, it leaves the vendor and the home user who started it each responsible, and accountable, for using it right. If it's made extremely simple to operate, with the most minimal user intervention required, this kind of product could really improve security without a lot of hassle. And make antivirus vendors a new ton of money.

Re:Well...

[DrSkwid]

> hardcore gamers aren't likely to use digital picture frames

you plucked this assertion out of your ass

Re:WARNING: GNAA

[TheThiefMaster]

I clicked the link, and Avast! Antivirus automatically broke the connection because it found malware.

Good enough for you?

Re:Nuclear bomb of malware?

[M-RES]

The problem is : you develop all your photos. You put them in an album perhaps. You most likely then put that album on a shelf where you promptly forget about it. You never look through those pictures again. Digital picture frame solution : display all your photos on a rotational basis so you see different pictures all the time - even those you'd forgotten about, bringing back memories of the event/place/people. It makes taking all those pictures in the first place have a point... for a lot of people. I don't have one myself as I use a screensaver on the machine hooked up to the TV to do the same thing, so I don't necessarily need one, but many people can see the benefit. And for those people (probably less tech-savvy than an original luddite) the autorun idea means it's one less thing to do (when they don't even know what all that 'install' and 'driver' nonsense really means/does anyway). You have to remember, most people FEAR their computer - it's alien to them, and they refuse to attempt anything until someone's shown them how to do it first. It's sad, but it's true.

oblig.

[Xogede]

- Run an OS that does not automatically try to mount devices, without user interaction.
- Run an OS that does not execute programs on devices once mounted, without user interaction but preferably not at all. (Autorun, I'm looking at you)

Windows Server 2003?

Re:Well...

[John3]

> hardcore gamers aren't likely to use digital picture frames

you plucked this assertion out of your ass

Since there are somewhere over 8 million WoW players (as an example) then I'd have to agree with your comment about the source of the assertion. Many, many of the WoW gamers I chat with online have difficulty upgrading video drivers and managing their PC. If they want to proudly display their WoW toons to their friends of course they will buy a digital picture frame at Best Buy.

Re:Well...

[rah1420]

How about 'don't log in as administrator?' Another helpful tip to prevent issues. I wonder if this virus would be able to infect a PC if a "lowly" user plugged in the USB?

Re:Nuclear bomb of malware?

[uncoveror]

I don't know about the author, but the Chinese are convinced a lot of us use them. This is all part of China's war on us without firing a shot!. [uncoveror.com]

It is not "professional", but gov.

[WindBourne]

The thing is that China is doing to the world, what America did to USSR (and still doing to the world); putting hidden viruses and back doors in our products. Who should be blamed for it? American companies who are building their products in China. After all, you can blame the individual who is working to help their father or mother land.