Skype worm doing the rounds

Skype has issued a warning on its official blog, which states that a new worm has hit the VoIP service’s Windows client this week.

According to Skype, the worm disguises itself as a cleverly-written chat message from another Skype user that includes a web link disguised as a .jpg.

By clicking on the link, the receiver will be prompted to download a .scr file, which is the file that Skype and several security firms have identified as a virus called “w32/Ramex.A”.

If a computer becomes infected by this virus, it will use Skype’s public API to access the PC. The company also warns that if your PC becomes infected, your contacts list and address book may have been harvested for more worm targets.

If your PC has been infected by the worm, Skype has advised users to update their anti-virus definitions before scanning their system to detect and remove the worm.

Have you seen one of these messages this week? Tell us in the forums.