The attachment will be a Visual Basic Script (.vbs) file. The virus will rename all files on the local hard drive with a .vbs extension and set the file size to zero, essentially making the computer system inoperable.
It also changes its “fingerprint” while spreading, making it more difficult for anti-virus software to detect.
Early reports suggest that the virus originated in Israel. It has already been dubbed the “NewLove” virus.
Like the Love Bug virus, the new virus spreads by mailing itself to everyone in the Microsoft Outlook address book on the computer it has infected, but it can affect any computer running Microsoft Windows if the receiver opens the attachment.