An Austrian antivirus company, Ikarus, issued a warning last week that it had discovered a Java virus, called BeanHive. A spokesperson for Ikarus, told Computerwire that whereas the virus’s earlier incarnation, called Strange Brew (CI No 3,479), was only a worry to developers using the internet, the new one targets end-users. BeanHive has two components, the worker and the queen. The worker attaches itself to a Java .class file and accesses a user’s PC through the browser. Once activated the worker sends a call to its queen across the internet. The queen responds to the call and travels to the local PC and begins building another ‘BeanHive.’ The known form of the virus does not currently contain any damaging functions, it only infects all .class type files. However, a damaging function could, in principle, be incorporated. The easiest way to protect your PC, says Ikarus, is to disable all Java applets on your browser.
