It looks like Windows Genuine Advantage is the target of a new Trojan, which pretends to be Microsoft's activation mechanism. The virus is said to take control of the system and will ask you for your credit card information. Any attempt to cancel the process will result in a full shut down. Oh nice :]

Now you may think "It can't be true. I have activated my legitimate copy of Windows. MS can't do such a thing!". Surely almost everyone will notice that something strange is going on, and hopefully very few people will actually become victims by inputting their credit card details. But unfortunately even the people who are not tempted to give up their information this time might well become victims the next time. After all, failure to follow the on-screen instructions results in your PC shutting down immediately.

This Trojan teaches us all a good lesson - Trust No One. This is the slogan from the TV show The X-Files, and very much applies when it comes to protecting your personal information. Sometimes the creators of Trojans attempt to impersonate Microsoft, a bank, or even a government organization. Whatever the warning or message says, we must make very sure it is genuine before giving up any personal details, financial or otherwise. It's far better to doubt a genuine request until proper verification is provided, than it is to blindly place your trust in a communique simply because it appears to have come from a trusted source.