The Office of Technology Services (OTS) is currently monitoring a new computer trojan virus, dubbed “Exploit-WMF” that is expected begin circulating the Internet shortly. The virus, which affects Windows-based machines only, can be spread via simply viewing a specially formatted Windows Meta File (WMF) image. These types of images can be viewed in any Web browser, attached to e-mail messages (with any comptabile image file extension, e.g., .JPG, .GIF), or linked from within an e-mail message.
No campus systems are known to be affected by this new exploit. McAfee VirusScan, free to all university faculty, staff and students, is expected to block any viruses exploiting this vulnerability. OTS is actively installing the latest McAfee updates on campus systems; off-campus users should regularly install the latest updates (or configure automatic updates). See {http://wwwnew.towson.edu/adminfinance/ots/CoreTechSecurity/OTSDownloads.asp} for more information on getting McAfee and regular updates.
Microsoft expects to release a patch for this vulnerability early next week as part of their regular monthly update cycle. When the update is available, OTS will install it on all managed desktops faster than normal. Watch OTS Alerts ({http://alerts.towson.edu}) for more details on the patch release. See {http://wwwnew.towson.edu/adminfinance/ots/coretechsecurity/infosecsecurityupdates.asp} for additional information on security updates at Towson.
The following best practices are always good precautions:
– Do not open e-mails from unknown sources.
– Only open attachments that you expect to receive, even from known sources.
– Do not automatically open e-mail attachments.
– Be cautious when clicking links to Internet web sites.
For more detailed information on the potential virus, see {http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/912840.mspx} and {http://vil.nai.com/vil/content/v_137760.htm}.
If you need assistance in determining whether or not your computer is protected or if you think your computer may be affected, please contact OTS. Students should contact Student Computing Services (410-704-5151, scs@towson.edu); faculty and staff should contact the Help Center (410-704-5151, helpcenter@towson.edu).
