Spam Attack Linked to German Election

The creator of a computer Trojan horse that unleashed a torrent of far-right spam e-mail messages in Germany this week may be trying to influence the outcome of the election Sunday in North Rhine-Westphalia, according to a spokesman for an antivirus company.

Computers infected with the Trojan horse, Sober.q, unwittingly sent thousands of spam e-mails bearing links to the Web site of the National Democratic Party, which espouses "Germany for Germans," the death penalty for some drug dealers and an end to the right of asylum.