Conflicker Worm, Nicknamed the Microsoft Virus, Set to Strike on April Fool's Day

A new computer virus is causing a panic. The Conficker worm is believed to strike systems running Microsoft Windows on April 1st, April Fool's Day. The Conflicker worm will not be your average April Fool's Day prank, however.

What is the Conflicker worm, nicknamed the Microsoft virus?

The Conficker worm is being called the "Microsoft virus" by some. The Conflicker worm is especially dangerous because it allows remote code execution. The remote code execution will allow the hackers and the worm creators to access any computers that are infected. TheConflicker worm is a type of computer virus that spreads. What is slightly unusual about this one is the fact it has been attaching itself to portable memory drives, like a jumpdrive or USB memory drive. The Conflicker worm can spread to any computers in your network at home or at work.

How do you determine if your computer is infected with the Conflicker worm

According to Cnet.com, a quick way to tell if your computer is infected with the Conflicker worm is to try to access the Web site of a major antivirus vendor, which the worm blocks. If you try to access anti-virus software website like McAfee, Symantec or Norton and you cannot, your computer may be infected with the Conflicker worm already. The Conflicker worm also blocks Microsoft updates.

What can you do to protect yourself from the Conflicker worm also known as the "Microsoft virus"

The most important thing you can do for your computer safety is keep up to date with all Microsoft updates and patches. Many people avoid the automatic Microsoft updates because they feel it is unnecessary. Always use the latest anti-virus software for your computer. Download the software from a reputable website or purchase computer anti-virus software at a store. Never click on any popups that offer you a free virus check.

Microsoft offers a free Windows Live OneCare Safety Scanner that may be able to detect if your computer is infected with a virus or worm. McAfee has detailed information on what this "Microsoft virus" does to your computers and how you can detect and remove it. See here for more information. Microsoft offers plenty of information on this latest computer threat here. Many computers users do not want to buy expensive anti-virus software and regret that choice once there computer has been infected. You can get a trial of free anti-virus software from Microsoft called Windows One Care here. You can also run the windows malicious software removal tool free at the Microsoft website.

This is not the first time a new computer virus or worm has cause widespread panic. In 2003, the Blaster worm caused a wide spread panic throughout the world. One of the virus writers responsible for the Blaster worm was arrested and is serving a jail sentence. Another worm in recent history was the Melissa worm. The Melissa worm infected mail systems and caused a mass shutdown from all of the activity. The person who created the Melissa worm was arrested and served time in jail.

Sources
Microsoft "Protect yourself from the Conficker computer worm"
Microsoft "Centralized Information About The Conficker Worm"
Microsoft "Virus alert about the Win32/Conficker.B worm"
McAfee "Protecting yourself from the Conflicker worm
Cnet "Conficker flaw reveals which computers are infected"
Wikipedia Blaster Worm information
Wikipedia Melissa computer worm information
Microsoft Free trial of Windows One Care