Cell phones in the US are not Cabir-immune
By IT-Observer Staff
Monday, 21 February 2005 22:40 EST



The Cabir mobile phone virus has been spotted on a Nokia handset for sale in a shop in California, reported Finnish anti-virus research company F-Secure.

Cabir is a worm that runs in Symbian OS handsets and replicates itself over Bluetooth connections. Infected phones display the message 'Caribe' when turned on, and the worm then looks for other Bluetooth connected handsets nearby that will allow it to spread. Its payload causes phone batteries to drain.

Since it was created in Philippines in August 2004, Cabir has “mutated” to produce 15 variations and spread into 12 countries through travelers' infected handsets.

Rapidly developing technology makes cell phone viruses a fast-growing threat, warned IBM in its recent research. It is now becoming essential for all Symbian users get anti-virus protection for their mobile - the sooner the better.