Virus Alert: Shakira joins the chick-worm posse

A virus named after Colombian singing sensation Shakira has been reported to be spreading in the wild.

The worm arrives as an email with the subject line "Shakira Pics" and an attachment entitled "ShakiraPics.jpg.vbs". If the user runs the attachment the message forwards itself to every name in the users' Microsoft Outlook address book.

The message also spreads through internet relay chat systems.

Users will know they have been hit when the message "You have been infected by the ShakiraPics Worm" appears on their screen.

The names of attractive female stars such as Anna Kournikova, Jennifer Lopez and Britney Spears are often used to lure people into opening the attachments on unsolicited emails which spread worms.

In fact, this is Shakira's second major appearance in the virus world.

Anti-virus experts recommend against opening attachments on unsolicited emails.

Sophos suggests blocking files with two suffixes, such as ".jpg.vbs", which are used by virus writers to fool users into thinking that a malicious visual basic script is a harmless picture attachment.