Over 40 websites are using President-elect Barack Obama's historical inauguration to lure visitors into downloading malware and hijacking their computers, according to Panda Security.

Scammers use websites that claim the president-elect has resigned and post fake news articles with headlines like "Barack Obama has refused to be a President." However, "opening the articles will result in user computers being infected and turned into zombies remotely controlled by cyber-criminals," Panda warns.

"Sensational news headlines or other social engineering tricks are just a handful of typical hooks used by hackers to spread malware," Panda Security U.K. country manager Dominic Hoskins explained. "Users need to be extra careful when visiting popular websites. If you have any doubts about a website, it has too many spelling mistakes or unusual typeface etc., then you are most likely on a fake site and should close it immediately without clicking on any links."

Experts at PandaLabs say the attack seems to have come from China, as all domains have been bought by a Chinese company with a long record of malware attacks.