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The latest version of the Lebreat worm has left a message within the code lambasting rival authors and promising to fine-tune the worm so that it is even more effective.

The author says he will introduce a new engine into the virus, which has already seen multiple variants in its relatively short lifetime.

The virus also criticises Sven Jaschan, the German teen found guilty of authoring

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the NetSky and Sasser worms, and drops a picture - xsas.jpg - of Jaschan on the victim's hard drive.

The LeBreat worm arrives as an email with various short subject and message texts designed to dupe the recipient into opening the attachment. The worm spreads by mailing itself to email addresses it finds as well as exploiting a Microsoft vulnerability that leaves a back door open through which attackers can control the infected PC.

'The author of Lebreat has written a lengthy diatribe inside his virus - attacking other worms, security companies, and threatening that future versions of his worm will infect more people. He or she also seems to have little sympathy for fellow virus writer Sven Jaschan, who was found guilty by a German court last month,' said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. 'Unfortunately childish squabbles like this are being fought on the computers of innocent users, who are uninterested in fights in the virus underground.'