Porn Virus Blackmails Victims Over "Copyright Violation"

FishRep writes with this excerpt from the BBC: "A new type of malware infects PCs using file-share sites and publishes the user's net history on a public website before demanding a fee for its removal. The Japanese trojan virus installs itself on computers using a popular file-share service called Winni, used by up to 200m people. It targets those downloading illegal copies of games in the Hentai genre, an explicit form of anime. Website Yomiuri claims that 5,500 people have so far admitted to being infected. The virus, known as Kenzero, is being monitored by web security firm Trend Micro in Japan. Masquerading as a game installation screen, it requests the PC owner's personal details. It then takes screengrabs of the user's web history and publishes it online in their name, before sending an e-mail or pop-up screen demanding a credit card payment of 1,500 yen (£10) to 'settle your violation of copyright law' and remove the webpage."

Re:Sounds like a plan

[Anonymous Coward]

Not in Australia or the UK it isn't. Jail time and a listing on the sex offenders register follows from underage stickmen porn...

Re:Sounds like a plan

[Anonymous Coward]

This depends on your jurisdiction. Many countries, such as Australia [bbc.co.uk], believe that a real child is abused when someone draws a picture of a child being abused, or something. The new UK Act which came into force earlier this month also criminalises certain depictions by adult actresses, though I'm not sure it goes as far as criminalising hentai... must read up further.

Anyway, every guy who has browsed porn has at least one pic in his cache/deleted which "might" be underage and for which he has no proof otherwise. Even if he only visits pron sites where records are kept of the age of models, the file fragment on his drive may not contain any information about that source. The only way not to be charged with a CP violation is to not get yourself in a position where an authority can read your drive and wants to charge you with something, even when you know that you have never looked for CP and have never knowingly downloaded it.

Wonderful reporting courtesy of the BBC

[onlysolution]

I think it's worth pointing that Winni is used almost exclusively by the Japanese, and the total population of Japan is still under 130 million people. The 200 million users figure put forth by the BBC is a bad guess at best, and completely made up at worst. I honestly expected better from the BBS, but why should factual reporting get in the way of writing a sensational story?

Public Website?

[pgn674]

For this to be effective, either the website needs to be highly publicized, or the user needs to be stupid or in a panic. I can't image the web site can be publicly known for long; virus maintainers have a hard enough time keeping their private servers up and connectable. I wonder how the virus convinces the user that their private history will be available for peruse by their friends/coworkers/family?

Symantec has some information on the virus: HTTP Infostealer Kenzero Activity: Attack Signature - Symantec Corp. [symantec.com]

Re:Sounds like a plan

[Nadaka]

The problem with not caring if other people know about it is this: in a lot of places, having viewed hentai drawings is sufficient for criminal charges, prison time and in a few rare cases execution.

Re:Sounds like a plan

[Minwee]

Drawings of schoolgirls getting raped.
There's quite a difference.

You might [msn.com] want to tell [statutelaw.gov.uk] a few more people [theregister.co.uk] about that [qt.com.au].