Security firm Sophos has warned that a newly discovered spyware worm, that has been tagged as PrsKey-A is rapidly spreading through the multi-player online role-playing game, Priston Tale.
This worm has the capacity to steal usernames, passwords and other sensitive information form the players' systems. The worm waits for users to enter either Priston Tale or the Yahoo mail system captures keystrokes and transmits the same back to the hackers who can then take control of the system.
Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos said that the spread of the malware menace meant that the registration keys, passwords and data from players of computer games could now be easily stolen, "In many cases the virtual weapons, cash and amour needed for such games are then sold in the real world, where there's a growing demand from online gaming fanatics.
If gamers buy these virtual goods online, they should be careful not to purchase them from Internet criminals who are making online life more dangerous for everyone," he observed.
Priston Tale is a 3D fantasy multi-player game that involves annihilating monsters. The game is played online has a large number of subscribers in South Korea where it originated. It also has a substantial following in Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand as well as other English speaking countries in the region. Sophos has said that the current worm is not 'highly malicious', but has asked users to make sure that their anti-virus software is regularly updated.
This is not the first time that online gamers are being singled out as targets. Other popular multi-player games like Lineage, Outwar and Legend of Mir 2 have been vulnerable to attacks by viruses and Trojan horses in the past. Recently, a Chinese exchange student was arrested in Japan for creating bots to steal from Lineage II players. The student then disposed off the loot on eBay for real cash.
