Developer denies giving backdoor access to US government

Reports emerged in the US last week of an alleged FBI project code named Magic Lantern. Although details of the project are rather vague, it is claimed that Magic Lantern is contained in an e-mail attachment which is capable of inserting FBI spy-ware inside the recipient PC.

On Monday, Network Associates issued a statement of denial saying that it had neither contacted, nor been contacted by the FBI and that it does not expect the FBI to do so. The statement also pointed out that the existence of Magic Lantern had not been confirmed by the FBI or any government agency and that Network Associates intends to comply with US law and claims that it has always done so.

The statement has done little to quell the worries of critics who described the statement as narrow and claimed that it could be easily circumvented.

Coincidentally, a new computer worm known as BadTrans.B emerged this week. BadTransB works in much the same way as the mythical Magic Lantern. The worm installs hacking software and, while not destructive, it does install a keylogger, a program that records what a person using the infected PC types and then sends the information to the virus writer's e-mail address.

The key-logging program, known as Backdoor-NK.server, focuses specifically on four software functions that are used by programs to allow a person to enter a password, so it mainly records account information entered.