Anti-virus vendor Sophos has identified a Trojan designed to steal usernames and passwords from players of a popular online game.
Lineage, a medieval themed multi-player game, has millions of subscribers around the globe, says the Sophos Web site.
Apart from stealing player information, the LegMir-Y Trojan also attempts to turn off anti-virus software and security-related applications, leaving the door open for future hacker attacks, says Brett Myroff, CEO of local Sophos distributor Netxactics.
"Everyone should remember that viruses, worms and Trojan horses aren't a game - they are a costly nuisance to computer users around the world."
Although viruses written for the sole purpose of gathering gaming data might seem trivial to most, the occurrence of such malware is growing, says Myroff.
Other multi-player online games whose players have been targeted by viruses and Trojan horses in the past include Outwar and Legend of Mir 2. A British youth last month received a six-month suspended sentence for his part in distributing the Randex worm, with the intention of gaining points in Outwar, adds Myroff.
"It's sad to think that people will be so desperate to do better in a virtual world that they're actually prepared to commit a real crime. We expect to see more Internet skirmishes between rival online gamers and malicious code to assist this kind of Internet robbery in the future."
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