Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/07/irish_language_virus/
First Irish-speaking virus holds bloke's computer to ransom
Póg mo thóin!
Posted in Security, 7th September 2012 11:21 GMT
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Crooks have created what's reckoned to be the first computer virus featuring the Irish language.
The malware – dubbed Gaeilge – is a strain of ransomware that locks up an infected computer and attempts to extort €100 from the user for an unlock code. The demand for cash reportedly appeared in poorly written Gaelic, and the software nastie was spotted on a computer in County Donegal, Ireland.
The victim wisely took his compromised machine for repairs rather than handing over money to the crooks. The virus claimed the lock-down was a result of the Irish government detecting that the user had accessed online pornography [1].
Technician Brian McGarvey of Techie2u computer repairs told [2] The Irish Times that it was the first time he'd come across a virus written in the Irish language during his 12 years of experience in the job.
"It’s quite a sophisticated and convincing scam," he said. "To someone who didn’t have good Irish it looks very legitimate. I suspect they have used some kind of translation transfer and only about 60 per cent of the virus makes sense in Irish. It has a logo which features an Irish flag and it looks quite official." ®