MANILA, Philippines--Some spam e-mails that claim to spread love are instead attempts to lure unsuspecting recipients into spreading malicious software, according to a recent warning by antivirus firm Sophos.

This spate of "romantic" e-mails, which try to spread the "Storm" trojan, has accounted for as much as eight percent of total e-mails seen by Sophos.

"Subject lines used in the attack are many and varied, but all pose as a romantic message," Sophos said in a posting on its website.

Some of the subject lines are "Falling In Love with You," "Special Romance," "You're In My Thoughts," "Sent with Love," "Our Love Will Last," "Our Love is Strong," "Your Love Has Opened," "You're the One," "A Toast My Love," and "Heavenly Love."

The body of the e-mail contains a link to an IP-address to one of the many compromised computers on the Storm botnet. The website displays a large red heart, while installing a virus on the visitor's computer.

Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, believes this attack is the handiwork of a group whose goal is to trick users into giving away sensitive information that is then used for fraudulent purposes.

"It seems the hackers were too impatient to wait for St Valentine's Day this year before plucking on heart strings in their attempt to infect the unwary," Cluley said. "People will be truly lovesick if they let the malicious code run on their PC."