iPhone 5 emails infect PCs

On the eve of the much-awaited debut of Apple Inc.'s iPhone 5, cybercriminals are taking advantage of the hype to plant malware on victims' computers. According to computer security firm Sophos, one of the victims of the latest scam was a journalist who received an email claiming to be from Apple. "Clicking on links in the email takes you to some Windows malware (lucky Mac fans are being ignored by the hackers on this occasion) which Sophos detects as Mal/Zapchas-A," Sophos said in a blog post. It said that in the case of journalist Abram Wagenaar, he received a malicious email, claiming to be from Apple and giving details of the new "Apple iPhone 5GS." A screenshot of the email showed the supposed email contained links to check out the newest iPhone, which was to debut October 4. Sophos noted cybercriminals are now taking advantage of Apple product announcements. It noted a similar attack using an iPhone 5 disguise during the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) this year. "(W)e have to accept that it's likely that whenever Apple is scheduled to reveal new technology that cybercriminals will try to exploit the interest," it said. — TJD, GMA News