Security researchers have discovered the first ever SMS virus. Similar in nature to the Koobface virus that hit Facebook last month, the virus, dubbed Sexy View, uses social engineering to distribute itself. Once it infects a smartphone, it accesses the contact list and sends itself to everyone on it via text messaging. The text message invites the recipient to view some “hot pics” and provides an URL. If the URL is followed it downloads the worm onto that phone.

          “Sexy View is important in many ways. It is the first text message worm ever. It’s also the first mobile phone worm that circumvents the signature checks that are meant to secure the latest smartphones. The motive behind it seems to be to collect information for mobile phone spamming purposes. Mobile phone spam is already a big problem in some parts of the world – eventually it will be an issue everywhere.” said an F-Secure researcher.

Previously this worm was confined to phones running the SymbianOS but has now spread beyond them. It’s not yet known if one mobile OS is more vulnerable than the other, but the good news is that at least for now, the threat is largely contained to China. However you can be sure it, or a similar piece of mobile malware will hit other shores sooner rather than later.

A New Zealand man profiled in a book about “Spam Kings” has been linked to a new SMS spam campaign hitting online forums. The spams are sent via text message and hype a site called AntennaBooster.co.nz which sells what it claims is a signal enhancer for cell phones. Vodafone users have also been targeted.

Brendan Battles, the man behind both the site and the spam, has been a known spammer for many years. Back in 2003 he sued Spamhaus for blacklisting his Emarketers.org site, but quickly dropped the suit just a few months later. In 2006, he was accused of spamming for broadband accounts and telephone calling rates. According to the “Spam Kings” book, Battles sent up to 50 million spam messages a day hyping scams such as subliminal weight loss.

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