Cybersecurity Report 2010

Resource: 2010 MAAWG Email Security-Awareness and Usage Report

Are you aware that there are malicious viruses that can control your computer without your knowledge and maybe use your computer to spread spam or steal your personal information just with one click email?

Half of email users in North America and in Western Europe have opened or accessed spam and large proportions, representing tens of millions, have taken action like clicking on links or opening attachments that could leave them susceptible to their computers being infected.

Furthermore, nearly half of those who have accessed spam (46%) have done so intentionally – to unsubscribe, out of curiosity, or out of interest in the products or services being offered.

In addition, many users do not typically flag or report spam or fraudulent email. Younger users both generally consider themselves more experienced in terms of email security but also are more likely to engage in risky behavior, such as opening or clicking on spam.

Preventing and identifying spam

If they were to become infected with a bot, email users are most likely to say they would rely on their anti-virus software to alert them (66%). Majorities also say that they would know that they have a bot if their computer wasn’t functioning normally or was running slowly (52%) or if they noticed a program that they hadn’t installed (52%).

More than four in ten say that they would know that they had a bot if their friends told them that they had been receiving spam from their email address (45%) or if unusual error messages appeared (43%).

Roughly a third would recognize that their computer had a bot if their credit card company or bank notified them of suspicious account activity (37%), if they noticed corrupted files (34%), or if a lot of pop-ups appeared (33%). One in twenty (5%) would look for other indicators. However, nearly one in five (19%) say that they are unsure as to how they would recognize a bot.

For business is a critical task prevent virtual attacks to keep safe their confidential information and message exchange. Companies should use an Enterprise email server www.xgen.in and anti-spam email privacy technology www.spamjadoo.com to protect against Denial of Service attacks to ensure stability of your messaging network and optimize message flow.