Security firm Symantec, the company responsible for the Norton suite of security products amongst other things, have revealed in their latest Internet Security Threat Report that the threats to a users confidential information are on the increase.
Taking the form of Trojan Horses, Phishing attacks, attacks on web applications and Windows based Virus and worm variants, Symantec are warning that these attacks are becoming increasingly sophisticated in attempts to obtain a users personal information.
By the end of 2004, Symantec reported that their Brightmail AntiSpam filters were blocking an average of 33 million Phishing attempts per week. This is an increase from 9 million a week in the middle of July, which shows just how popular these online scams are becoming. Either that or Symantec are getting better at spotting them.
Looking to the future, Symantec are forecasting that the use of bot networks for financial gain is likely to increase. They also believe that more malicious code attacks will be aimed at mobile devices.
In the meantime, we can only recommend as usual that you always run an up to date anti-virus software on your computer, and on any other devices that you can get anti-virus software for. Keeping your operating systems and software patched to the latest levels isn't a bad idea either.
|
|
