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Ecard from “White House” actually malware

Did you receive an e-holiday card from the White House? Well, it wasn\'t from the White House, and it wasn\'t just an ecard

Federal News Network Staff

January 4, 2011 8:30 am

< a min read

If you got a Christmas ecard from the White House: delete it. NetworldWorld.com is reporting that an ecard that looks like it is from the White House is actually malware designed for espionage. The website reports some of the victims were government employees and contractors who work in cybersecurity. It isn’t clear how many people got the card on December 23rd, but one security blogger says it appears to be designed to steal documents, not passwords or banking information. That puts this malware in the category of political espionage. Among the reported victims are an employee at the National Science Foundation’s Office of Cyber Infrastructure, and the Financial Action Task Force, which fights money laundering and terrorist financing.

This story is part of Federal News Radio’s daily Cybersecurity Update brought to you by Tripwire. For more cybersecurity news, click here.