New Virus Poses As Leaked MSN Messenger Beta

The Finnish security company F-Secure recently announced for all Internet users that a new virus has been discovered and it poses as a leaked pre-release version of the MSN Messenger instant messenger client.

This new virus, which F-Secure calls Virkel.F, is included in a file called BETA8WEBINSTALL.EXE, which can be downloaded from the Web site msgr8beta.com. This address especially presents all of the advantages users will have if they upgrade the existing chat client to the new, pre-release version of the MSN Messenger 8, including "real-time emoticons," and "built-in functionality with Windows Media Player 10."

The virus spreads because of those users naive enough to think that behind the BETA8WEBINSTALL.EXE lies the actual chat client and download it from a bogus address.
Once installed, the virus sends download links to a computer user's MSN Messenger buddies.
Afterwards, it connects the infected system to a botnet server, which means that a person's computer can be controlled remotely to attack other machines or send spam.