The Bean Connection

The Register reports that hackers have developed a sneaky technique for installing pirated movie files on Windows PCs infected with the lockx.exe rootkit. Doctored copies of BitTorrent are loaded on infected machines and used to download Disney movies or the film version of Mr. Bean.

The motive for the bizarre (and short-lived) attack, linked to a Middle East-based group in control of the network of infected machines - remains unclear. FaceTime Communications, the firm which uncovered the attack, reckons the assault is an experiment which might be applied to far more malign purposes in future.