Spanish authorities arrest mobile phone virus creator

Spanish police have arrested a 28-year-old man on suspicion of creating and spreading a virus that affected more than 115,000 high-end mobile phones, an AFP report said.

The AFP report said the man was detained in the eastern coastal city of Valencia following an investigation that lasted over seven months.

It is the first time that the creator of a virus that targets mobile phones was arrested in Spain, a police statement said.

The virus struck Bluetooth-enabled phones that run on the Symbian operating system and it was disguised as messages claiming to contain erotic images, sports information or virus protection software, the AFP report said.

It caused millions of euros in damage to both the owners of the mobile phones as well as to mobile services providers, the police statement said.