New virus numbers hit 33-month high, but old timers dominate
reports
Sophos, a world leader in protecting businesses against spam and
viruses, has published a report revealing the top ten viruses and
hoaxes causing problems for businesses around the world.
The report, compiled from Sophos's global network of monitoring
stations, shows that all of the top ten most frequently encountered
viruses have been around for months. Number one in the chart -
Zafi-B - has held the top spot in the chart for the last three
months.
The top ten viruses in August 2004 were as follows:
"Although we have seen a small, ten percent, decline in reports
of Zafi-B since last month, this email-aware worm doesn't look like
it's going to fade into obscurity anytime soon," said Carole
Theriault, security consultant at Sophos. "Protection against
Zafi-B has been available for a couple of months now, and computer
users need to get into the habit of updating their systems in a
much more timely manner, or this nuisance will continue to dominate
reports."
Sophos analysed and protected against 1,230 new viruses in
August, the highest number of new viruses seen in one single month
since December 2001. The total number of viruses Sophos now
protects against is 93,875. Sophos figures show that over 9.3% of
emails circulating during the month of August were viral.
"Despite more than 1,200 new viruses being detected in August,
not one has made it into the chart this month. In fact, the entire
top ten is made of viruses which have been doing the rounds for
weeks if not months. A few pesky Netsky variants are still flying
around, despite the arrest of the worm's alleged author a few
months ago," continued Theriault.
The top ten hoaxes reported to Sophos during August are as
follows:
"There are two new entries to the hoax chart this month,"
continued Theriault. "The 'T-Virus' hoax caused quite a bit of
confusion in August - an ill-advised viral marketing ploy to
promote a new video game, it used text messages telling phone users
that they were infected by a virus. Meanwhile a phishing scam, the
'bogus US bank email', redirected innocent users to a website in
Korea in an attempt to steal bank account details."
Sophos has made available a free, constantly updated information feed for intranets and
websites which means users can always find out about the latest
viruses and hoaxes.
Graphics of the virus Top Ten chart are available here.
More information about safe
computing, including anti-hoax policies.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.