SEATLE – Microsoft warned the world today that hackers have found a new way to spread viruses around the globe at record pace.
According to Microsoft, the hackers managed to infiltrate computer manufacturing plants where they place the virus on virgin hard drives still to be installed in computers and sold to vendors around the globe.
Microsoft write at its blog that hackers have managed to infiltrate computer manufacturing plants and store viruses on virgin hard drives. Photo Credit: BRUNO
Vendors, unaware a virus is dormant on the computer’s hard drive, then sell the already infected new computers to unsuspecting consumers.
Microsoft says it recently intercepted at least 500 viruses and other damaging software that could have infected several million computers.
One of the viruses would allow the criminals to activate a microphone and camera thereby gaining ‘unauthorized’ access to the computer owner’s home and ‘snoop’ around that person’s property without their knowledge.
Another program monitored keyboard activity undetected, thereby gaining access to passwords and other private information users would type into their computer system.
Microsoft says, the hackers developed a method to add even more viruses to the computers at a later time.