ISS Laptops Pick up a Bug

NASA Officials reported that the laptop computers used on the International Space Station have been infected with a virus, again.

NASA officials reported that the laptop computers used on the International Space Station have been infected

with a virus designed to steal passwords and send them to a remote server. Though this is not the first time

this has happened, NASA termed this simply a nuisance. NASA officials said that this isn't the first time this

has happened but it is also not a frequent occurrence. They further added that the virus infected con-critical station laptops used for email and minor experiments.

NASA officials are now trying to figure out how the virus got on board the ISS, since the station does not have direct Internet access, the virus would have to have been brought on board by way of a non-direct method. This means that the virus would have had to been brought on board by way of some kind of intranet or by way of a thumb drive.

NASA also declined to release the exact virus that caused the infection but sources report that it is likely it was a W32.Gammima.AG worm. This is a virus that is designed to install itself on a host computer and steal user IDs and passwords for online video games. The worm was first detected in August of 2007. But NASA officials have termed the virus as nothing more than a nuisance.