14 DAY TRIAL // A recent study released by Aladdin Knowledge Systems, the leader in Software DRM, identity management, and content security solutions, indicated a dramatic increase in the number of online attacks.
The study has indicated a spy ware growth of 213 percent, from 1,083 examples of attack in 2004 to 3,389 in 2005. The number of malicious threats classified as Trojans has risen from 1,455 in 2004 to 3,521 in 2005 which represents a 142 percent growth of the malicious programs masquerading as legitimate software.
Coming in third, but with a consistent increase none the least, are the generic threats or those created by viruses. These have grown by 56% in the past year, reaching 9.713 from 6.222 in 2004.
"The swelling amount of spy ware, as illustrated in the Aladdin report, is a direct representation of the fast-growing network of organized criminals that empower themselves through computers rather than physical theft," said Shimon Gruper, vice president of technologies for the Aladdin eSafe Business Unit. "We continue to see a tremendous upswing in spy ware and extremely vicious Trojans that are truly causing trouble not only for unfortunate consumers, but also organizations. It serves as further evidence that electronic threats are becoming much less of a game and more of a concentrated effort designed to steal identities and data."