The report also revealed that while malware continues to outpace other security threats, Australia's overall malware infection rate reduced by six per cent during the first half of 2009, compared with the preceding six months.
SIRv7 shows that out of the top security threats in Australia, seventy per cent were malware and thirty per cent consisted of potentially unwanted software. In addition, nineteen of the top twenty five threats consisted of malware.
The most prevalent threat in Australia, in terms of the number of computers infected, and the third most common threat worldwide, is "Renos," a Trojan downloader. Renos automatically downloads potentially unwanted software onto computers and typically presents erroneous warnings claiming the system is infected with spyware. The Trojan then offers to remove the alleged spyware for a fee, and in some cases, causes system instability. The second most prevalent threat in Australia, and the fourth most common threat worldwide, is "Zango Search Assistant," a form of Adware which monitors Web browsing activity and displays pop-up advertisements related to the Internet sites being viewed.
"It's been said that knowledge is power — and the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report allows us to provide our extensive analysis of the Australian and global threat landscape with our customers, partners and the broader industry, along with guidance to ensure people are better protected," said Stuart Strathdee, Chief Security Advisor, Microsoft Australia. "Microsoft is committed to providing not only security intelligence for our customers and the community, but also an accurate and comprehensive view of the realities of the threat landscape."
The security intelligence contained in SIRv7 is collected through a broad community of customers around the globe to help obtain a view of the threat landscape. Reporting mechanisms for the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report are diverse and comprehensive, including Microsoft's Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT), on 450 million computers worldwide; Bing, which performed billions of Web page scans during the past six months; Windows Live OneCare and Windows Defender, operating on more than 100 million computers worldwide; Forefront Online Protection for Exchange and Forefront Client Security, scanning billions of e-mail messages yearly; and Windows Live Hotmail, operating in more than 30 countries with hundreds of millions of active e-mail users.
