Topic: Malware spam increases eightfold

[Clive]

Spam email that contains malware is on the rise, security experts have warned.

Between July and September this year one in every 416 emails contained a malicious attachment, compared to one in every 3,333 emails in the previous quarter, according to Sophos.

The attachments can only do damage to Windows-based PCs, though the sheer volume of it means that it is a nuisance to Mac and Linux users too.

"For Apple Mac and Unix lovers, these major spam attacks just mean a clogged-up Inbox, not an infected operating system. But organised criminals are causing havoc for Windows users in the hunt for cold hard cash," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos.

However, applying a little common sense can help you stay out of trouble, Sophos said.

Too many people are clicking without thinking – exposing themselves to hackers who are hell-bent on gaining access to confidential information and raiding bank accounts. The advice is simple: you should never open unsolicited attachments, however tempting they may appear," Cluley continued.

www.sophos.com/spamreport

[Simon]

I've just spent the evening trying to rid a machine of some particularly nasty spyware, which managed to disable ALL Windows services!     Even a repair didn't work, so had to reinstall Windows in the end.

[Clive]

It seems to me that however well protected you are that the worst malware will always get through.   

[Simon]

Indeed, but I think in this case, the users were careless in clicking on things, and allowing everything that the security software tried to protect them against, as they didn't know any better.