Scanning at source could have stopped virus earlier
ISPs could have helped to prevent the quick spread and impact of
the Melissa virus, according to Sophos, the UK anti-virus software
vendor. A large number of computer users were left open to attack
due to the failure of ISPs to scan all emails for viruses.
Star Internet is currently the only ISP providing virus scanning
and handles up to 10,000 emails per hour. The scanning system
prevents, on average, 100 infected mails reaching their destination
each day. However, Star caught 185 cases of the Melissa virus alone
by the end of Monday, March 29, the day it hit the UK.
As more people gain access to the Internet through free
services, Sophos is warning of the increasing danger of viruses
spreading because of inadequate security. It is encouraging ISPs to
take more responsibility for the services they provide to
customers.
"Inevitably, the more the Internet becomes accessible to
unsuspecting members of the public, the greater the need for
education about security measures," said Ian Whalley, senior
programmer at Sophos. "We are currently in negotiation with other
ISPs to broaden their offerings to include automatic virus
scanning. We believe it would be a move welcomed by all."
"If there's one lesson to be learnt from the havoc wreaked by
Melissa, it's that the damage could have been lessened if more ISPs
caught the virus before it went further afield," said Mark Sunner,
technical director at Star Internet. "We took the initiative
because we believe ISPs that don't offer this kind of value-add
won't make it as far as the Millennium. The scale of investment for
an ISP to undertake such a project is huge, but customers are right
to make those demands."
Melissa came in at number five on Sophos's list of Top Ten
viruses during March, despite not striking until the end of the
month.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.