Don't click that headline, security researchers warn
E-mails pretending to contain video from MSNBC have links to malicious software, security companies are reporting.
A flood of e-mails pretending to be from MSNBC contain links to malicious software, security companies warned Wednesday.
According to an MX Lab blog post, subject lines always start with "msnbc.com - BREAKING NEWS" then are followed with a variety of possible headlines, including: "Google launches free music downloads in China"; "Plane crashes into prep school, hundreds of kids killed"; "Please give your opinions for change"; and "US Dollar hits 6-year high, further gains expected."
The Web address http://breakingnews.msnbc.com is valid if you type it into your browser; however, clicking the link within the body of the e-mail will take you to another site entirely. The bogus site will then ask you to download a Flash video file. It is the file adobe_flash.exe that contains a malicious Trojan horse.
Sophos and Websense also issued warnings about the e-mails. Earlier this month, Sophos warned that fake CNN Top Ten e-mails contained a similar Trojan horse. In 2006, the BBC was used in a similar attack.
Disclosure: CNET News is published by CBS Interactive, a unit of CBS.