Virus tempting MSN messenger users

A malicious website, http://www.msgrbeta8.com/, has claimed to contain a leaked version of MSN's Messenger 8 program, security firm F-Secure warned Tuesday.

The site boasts of additional features not available in the latest public version of the messenger service, such as Microsoft-supported skins, real-time emoticons, the ability to pause and resume file transfers, top 10 radio hits and local news items.

Once downloaded, the virus sends links to a user's contact list and connects the infected PC to a botnet server.

"If you download and run BETAWEBINSTALL.EXE from that site, you won't get a new chat client," F-Secure said. "Instead, your existing MSN Messenger will start to send download links to everyone in your contact list."

The firm also warned that the virus' download link always contains the recipient's email address.

www.f-secure.com