Malware spike observed in 2008

The latest Symantec Internet Security Threat Report has found a huge increase in the number of security vulnerabilities discovered in software as well as instances of Internet threats. Internet vectors are not limited to high-risk sites either; attackers are actively targeting legitimate websites in order to compromise them and serve up malicious content to unsuspecting visitors.

Though it won't help you implement a more secure infrastructure, I thought it would be fun to take a closer look at some of the facts covered in the report:

• Top web-based attack exploited a component of Microsoft Internet Explorer.
• Top attack targeted the Service RPC Handling Remote Code Execution Vulnerability in Microsoft Windows Server.
• Spam volume rose 200 percent to nearly 350 billion messages.
• Botnets were responsible for 90 percent of all spam emails.
• There were nearly 5,500 vulnerabilities documented in 2008, up 20 percent.
• Most attacks originate in the United States; it also has the most frequently targeted by DDoS attacks.
• China is the nation with the most bot-infected computers.
• Number of malware code signatures went up by 256 percent, a large spike by any measure.

For more on this story:
- check out this article at CNET News

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