Invitation Facebook warning spreads Olympic torch virus hoax

Facebook users are once again warning their online friends about a threat – the only problem this time is that it doesn’t really exist.

Messages are being sent across Facebook by well-intentioned Facebook users advising their friends to beware a virus that could “burn the whole hard disc.. C of your computer” while displaying an Olympic Torch.

A virus that actually physically burns your whole hard disk? Wow.. that sounds nasty. Especially if you’re resting a notebook on your lap at the time.

Could it even be possible? After all, you might have vaguely heard about how hackers might be able to set fire to your MacBook’s battery recently.

The truth is that the warning being spread on Facebook is nonsense, and although users are sounding the alarm to their online friends, they are actually doing nothing more than perpetuating a virus myth.

Here’s what a typical…

Read more in my article on the Naked Security website.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is a veteran of the anti-virus industry having worked for a number of security companies since the early 1990s when he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows. Now an independent security analyst, he regularly makes media appearances and is an international public speaker on the topic of computer security, hackers, and online privacy. Follow him on Twitter at @gcluley, on Mastodon at @[email protected], or drop him an email.