Some thoughts on ViraLock
We examine
ViraLock, a product which promises 'Zero Escape For Email Viruses',
provided, it seems, the virus plays by their rules.
It's understandable that we greet announcements of 'magic
pill' products with a little skepticism here at Virus
Bulletin. ViraLock promises 'Zero Escape For Email Viruses'
and claims to stop the spread of current and future email-borne viruses.
It seems at first that they may be onto something, but there
are a few caveats (see below). The software works by
sitting between your mail server and Outlook/Outlook Express,
and 'encrypting' email addresses - presumably changing them
for a key with which it looks up the real email address in
its own database. In this way, even if you do get hit by
a virus, all the addresses in your address book and mailbox
folders will be these keys, and thus undeliverable, and you
will not spread the virus.
However, there are some issues. First, how does the software
determine between legitimate mail that the user is sending,
and mail that Outlook is being compelled to send by a virus
that's manipulating it using MAPI? One would assume it can't,
and thus would be kind enough to decrypt the email addresses
for the virus.
Secondly, this is the kind of product that will lull users
into a false sense of security - people may begin to feel it's
a replacement for regularly-updated anti-virus software, and
thus get infected and hit with nasty payloads.
Finally, and most importantly, there are some situations
in which the product would seem to fail.
First, take VBS/Kakworm - it
spreads by making itself your outgoing signature on mail sent
from Outlook Express. Judging by the information provided on the product's website, this would
sail through.
Consider also W32/Ska - it works by hijacking
WSOCK32.DLL. At the point of interception by the virus, the
email address will need to have been decrypted - yet again,
the virus isn't inhibited. Both Kakworm and Ska were fairly
major viruses - they are both listed in the Top Ten Viruses in 'Computer viruses demystified' (published by a well-known vendor).
VB welcomes any reports from users of this product - email comments@virusbtn.com.
25 November 2002
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