There was a flood of viruses in the second half of 2005

The last six months have been marked by an unprecedented increase in the number of viruses and two major epidemics: the number of viruses has risen by 40 and phishing attempts have multiplied.

F-Secure has released its IT security report for the second half of 2005. According to this, the number of viruses rose from 2005 to about 110 in the second half of 150 - an unprecedented increase in the history of viruses. In parallel, mass attacks with network worms have dropped significantly. There were only two major infections: the Zotob worm caused major disruptions internationally in September, and the Sober.Y worm flooded mail systems in early November.

In late September, F-Secure noticed that Sony’s digital rights management software was using rootkit technology and reported it to the record label. The Sony rootkit scandal, which erupted more than a month later, then caused a huge problem for the entertainment giant worldwide. International publicity has raised a number of data security and vulnerability issues for companies like Sony.

In 2005, attempts at phishing attacks, which directly affected online banking customers - proliferated and promised the authors of malicious code big profits. Fake fundraising letters sent after natural disasters, which take advantage of people’s credulity and helpfulness, have also proven to be a good source of revenue.

In November, the number of mobile malicious codes exceeded one hundred. Such an increase in the number of mobile viruses suggests that the criminal gangs that created them are serious about exploiting this area.

Keeping pace with the evolution of IT security threats, F-Secure has introduced a number of new products over the past six months, including F-Secure Internet Security 2006 software and the company’s first hardware solution, the F-Secure Messaging Security Gateway.