New virus hijacks webcams

"More and more hackers are interested in spying on the people they manage to infect," said Graham Cluley, a senior technology consultant at Sophos in a statement. "In the workplace, this worm opens up the possibilities of industrial espionage. At home it's equivalent to a Peeping Tom who invades your privacy by peering through your curtains."

Rbot.gr is a multi-threat worm, spreading through a number of Microsoft Windows vulnerabilities -- including those exploited by MSBlast and Sasser -- and through network shares. Once it lands on a Windows PC, it installs a backdoor Trojan horse that can then lead to the planting of password stealers, key loggers, and Webcam hijackers.

"If your computer is infected and you have a Webcam plugged in, then everything you do in front of the computer can be seen, and everything you say can be recorded," said Cluley.

Cluley sees Rbot.gr and its ilk as evidence of a trend of malware spying on unprotected PCs, literally.

"With many home users keeping poorly-defended PCs in their bedroom, there is considerable potential for abuse," he said.