SINGAPORE: U.K.-based Sophos Plc, the fourth-largest anti-virus solutions provider,
said it sees more viruses and their cousin, the self-propagating worm, infecting computers in 2003, but their occurrence was not expected to accelerate significantly.
"Virus writers are most interested in creating the next super Windows
worm, spread by email or instant messaging, as these mass-mailing viruses carry
the greatest impact," Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos.
"We expect more executable email-aware worms this year, while more
viruses are written which use instant messaging services."
Sophos also expects to see a rise in the number of so-called "Backdoor
Trojans", which open up holes in operating systems enabling hackers to
implant Remote Access Tools (RATs) that can operate an infected computer by
remote control.
About 80,000 viruses now exist, having grown at a rate of around 600-700 new
ones each month in 2002, similar to that of 2001, but down from 800-900 a month
the year before, Cluley said.
"Anti-virus software is generally pretty good at finding viruses, but
the weak link is human beings -- people launching email attachments without
thinking," he said. Nine out of last year's top 10 viruses were spread by
email on Windows platforms, with the "Klez" worm as the year's most
prolific virus. Last year's second-most common virus was the "Bugbear"
worm, Cluley said.
"Bugbear" took advantage of a known vulnerability in Microsoft's
Internet Explorer and could be automatically run simply by reading the e-mail
and not opening the attachment. "Klez" was also spread by e-mail.
So far, personal digital assistants (PDAs), or mobile phones have been
largely free of attack. "A virus in cyber-terrorism is like releasing a
blown up balloon -- you don't know where it's going to end up and may even
return to hit you in the face," Cluley said.
© Reuters