Buyers of Samsung's new bada-based handset, the S8500 Wave, have got more than they bargained for thanks to malware that appears to have found its way onto the included microSD card.
According to Mobile Burn, a 'test unit' shipped from Seoul - originally destined to be sent for sale in Germany - arrived with a worm in a file titled slmvsrv.exe which attempts to automatically run if the handset is connected to a Windows-based PC.
Should the file succeed in running, it will attempt to copy both itself and the autorun file runs it to any connected removable storage in order to spread.
With timestamps indicating that the card was infected in May, it is most likely that the infection is the result of a slip-up at the factory rather than a malicious act by those who supplied the handset to Mobile Burn for review.
The issue doesn't appear to be restricted to test units, either: threads are appearing across the Internet indicating that users who bought their handsets in Germany are also finding themselves fighting a worm infection.
This isn't the first time malware has found its way onto a device from the factory: back in July last year Toshiba TG01 smartphones were supplied with a virus in internal memory, interestingly again from a German supplier. Other devices to have been affected in this way recently include digital photo frames, brand-name PCs, and even gifts at a security conference.
Are you surprised to see a handset make it onto the open market with a nasty little worm added into the bargain, or will this sort of thing keep happening until companies invest more into their overseas production facilities - or at least buy them an up-to-date virus scanner? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
According to Mobile Burn, a 'test unit' shipped from Seoul - originally destined to be sent for sale in Germany - arrived with a worm in a file titled slmvsrv.exe which attempts to automatically run if the handset is connected to a Windows-based PC.
Should the file succeed in running, it will attempt to copy both itself and the autorun file runs it to any connected removable storage in order to spread.
With timestamps indicating that the card was infected in May, it is most likely that the infection is the result of a slip-up at the factory rather than a malicious act by those who supplied the handset to Mobile Burn for review.
The issue doesn't appear to be restricted to test units, either: threads are appearing across the Internet indicating that users who bought their handsets in Germany are also finding themselves fighting a worm infection.
This isn't the first time malware has found its way onto a device from the factory: back in July last year Toshiba TG01 smartphones were supplied with a virus in internal memory, interestingly again from a German supplier. Other devices to have been affected in this way recently include digital photo frames, brand-name PCs, and even gifts at a security conference.
Are you surprised to see a handset make it onto the open market with a nasty little worm added into the bargain, or will this sort of thing keep happening until companies invest more into their overseas production facilities - or at least buy them an up-to-date virus scanner? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
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