EWeek reports that a cellphone virus that originated in the Phillipines has been found on cellphones in the United States.
The virus, called "Cabir," spreads via Bluetooth, which is not available on all phones. Bluetooth is a short range (a few tens of feet) wireless protocol used in cellphones, wireless headsets, and a few laptops. The virus is able to spread because many cellphone owners leave their Bluetooth network unsecured, or open, and so the phone will "talk" to any other Bluetooth device in the immediate area.
Once infected, the phone looks for other unsecured phones and continually tries to spread the virus. The owner of the phone may not even be aware this is happening. Bluetooth has not caught on, and some industry analysts are predicting the technology will die in the next year or two as fewer manufacturers include the feature.
My four year old cellphone continues to work just fine, and, no, it has no Bluetooth. It also lacks a camera, video capabilities, can't download ringtones, and strangely enough, works just fine as, well, a phone. As Freud might say, "Sometimes a phone is just a phone."