18.06.2004 9.00 am By PAUL BRISLEN and agencies
Cellphone users don't have to worry about the newly announced cellphone virus, but should be aware of the implications for the future, says anti-virus expert Nick FitzGerald.

Security software developers warned this week that an international group which specialised in creating viruses to show that no technology was safe had created a cellphone virus.

FitzGerald, who consults on viruses and their construction for some of the world's leading software makers, says that this virus was not likely to cause anyone in New Zealand any problems.

The virus's destructive capabilities were limited to displaying its name, Cabir, on the phone's screen and trying to spread itself to other phones via the wireless network protocol Bluetooth.

"Even if it were out there in the wild it's very unlikely to get leverage.

If an infected phone does send you the virus, you would get a message asking you to accept the connection.

"If you said yes you would then have to agree to run the application as well and most users would reject it at that stage."

FitzGerald said the worst side-effect of the virus was its seeking other Bluetooth connections, which would wear the battery out faster than normal.

According to FitzGerald, the virus was designed to warn the phone manufacturers and the public about this kind of security issue, something he saw as the next frontier in the fight against viruses.

Anti-virus experts have been warning for months that mobile phone viruses were set to multiply, given the diverse uses of mobile phones.