Christmas virus alert

Computer users are being warned to watch out for a virus that could be lying dormant in their machines waiting to strike on Christmas Day.

If a PC is turned on 25 December, the virus is programmed to attack the machine's start up system. This means the computer will not be able to be restarted.

Although the PC can be repaired, any files that have not been saved to floppy disc may well be lost.

Sally Watson, editor of silicon.com, said the virus was difficult to detect.

Virus writers like to do the worst they can - that's their challenge

Sally Watson
silicon.com

"Virus writers like to do the worst they can - that's their challenge," she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The virus made its first appearance on 25 December last year.

Ms Watson said if computer users had not updated their anti-virus software in the last 12 months they could face problems.

"It isn't like the ILOVEYOU virus where you could see clearly something had turned up in your inbox," she said.

"It attaches itself to other viruses and piggy backs on to them and keeps itself very silent and in the background."

But computers have to be turned on Christmas Day itself for the virus to be activated.

The Love Bug virus was released on 4 May, and spread by e-mail to affect hundreds of thousands of businesses and personal computers across the world.