It seems a pretty serious 'hack' has embedded a virus into one of those playful widgets used to poke, hug or flirt on Facebook.

According to an Advisory from FortiGuard, Click to Open Web Page the friendly little widget will go ahead and install some spyware onto your Windows computer called "Zango". This adware/spyware program then uses your computer like a cheap date on new year's.

Malicious Facebook Widget Facebook Widget Installing Spyware. Fortinet Global Security Research Team discovered a malicious Facebook Widget (officially, a "Platform Application") actively spreading on the social networking site which ultimately prompts users to install the infamous "Zango" adware/spyware.

I find many aspects of Facebook to be overly commercial and sometimes invasive, but mostly I find their lack of concern for Privacy or Security at the expense of always growing new accounts, no matter how fake or even malicious they are, is nearly rivaling even myspace.

I sometimes wonder if people will eventually feel used to generate billions of dollars in ad revenue for a company that doesn't really seem to be concerned with you or the information you submit to it.

We'll see, 2008 should be an interesting year!

Zango Gettin' Sued UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CASE NO. C07-0807-JCC