Internet Security Learning Center

Threats From Hackers "Converging," Researchers Say

Security vulnerabilities in the three media of email, the Web, and instant messaging are converging, experts warn, increasing the risk level facing computer users. "The increased convergence of threats across email, Web, and IM, combined with the increased sophistication of techniques, is an interesting new development," said Mark Sunner, CTO of MessageLabs. "Today, we see a growing number of emails and IMs containing links to Web sites where malware or spyware is automatically downloaded, as opposed to the traditional method where the message itself has a piece of malware attached." MessageLabs, which recently conducted a detailed study of the changing landscape of security threats, found that spam is generally on the rise, and that viruses and phishing attacks are becoming increasingly targeted. The portion of global email that is spam increased to 64.8 percent in June, a 6.9 percent jump from the previous month. Israel remains the world's leading target for spam, which accounts for 75.9 percent of all of its email traffic. In the wake of the Nyxem.D outbreak in February, India is still the country most subject to virus attacks. Spyware distribution is becoming increasingly aligned with spam and viruses, Sunner said. "For example, we have seen more evidence of spammers employing spyware to make their campaigns more effective. This leaves businesses with the increasingly complex challenge of securing company data and intellectual property without sacrificing important avenues of employee communication," he said. ISPs are beginning to work together to curb the spread of spam through associations such as the London Internet Exchange (LINX), a consortium of 220 ISPs. While spam continues to plague much of the world, there are anomalies that defy the trend. Australia, for instance, saw its rate of spam decline by more than 50 percent in the nine months leading up to June.

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