A public alert was raised yesterday by Hong Kong's main computer security watchdog after it received more than 300 reports of infection by the 'W32.Sasser' worm, which spreads through a computer connected to the internet - without the use of e-mail.
The worm targets Microsoft operating systems Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, which have a vulnerable port of connection to the internet called TCP port 445.
Although the worm and its variants have not been spreading as fast as some earlier e-mail worms and viruses, its method of contagion has raised alarm bells among experts.
'This Sasser worm only needs to know your computer's IP [internet protocol] address and it is able to sneak in and copies itself in your hard disk,' said Roy Ko Wai-tak, head of the Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Co-ordination Centre, which issued a warning on the worm yesterday.
'Next time you turn on and connect to the internet, it will spread to other exposed computers and you won't even know it.'
The new worm started surfacing in Hong Kong on Saturday. The centre received more than 300 reports of infection by yesterday, a third of which were from companies and the rest from individuals. Computers at two government departments were also affected.