Best Buy 'admits' to selling trojan infected goods

If you bought a digital photo frame from US retail giant Best Buy recently you may have got more than you bargained for. In a memo obtained by Engadget, Best Buy have admitted that an entire batch of Insignia-branded frames sold nationwide were infected with a Trojan horse.

It only affects Windows computers, so Mac and Linux users can commence sniggering. The memo, distributed by Best Buy management to stores regarding the problem and subsequent removal from sale of the frames, claims the Trojan was “pre-installed during the manufacturing process” and lies dormant until the frame is connected as a mass-storage device to a Windows PC.

The affected product, the Insignia 10.4” digital photo frame, was pulled from sale at the start of the year when the problem first came to light. It's only now that the real reason for the removal has become apparent, thanks to the leaked memo.

Store employees are advised by Best Buy management to direct customers returning the frames to the Geek Squad, their in-store techie service. There is no word about actually recalling the product from those who have already purchased it, with the memo only saying that letters outlining the problem will be sent to customers “once a solution has been tested and confirmed”.

The problem, of course, is that by the time Best Buy send these letters out the damage is likely to have been done. Although the frame has a built-in card reader – the use of which will not trigger the Trojan – it's highly likely that users will transfer pictures already stored on their computer via the USB interface, described by the manufacturer as “for easy connection to your computer”. Connection, infection: it's an easy mistake to make.

Any US readers the proud owners of the Limited Edition Frame with Free Trojan, or isn't it the sort of thing that appeals? Let us know over in the forums.