Spam and Viruses Hit All Time Highs in 2003; Converged Threats Now Steal Identities, Defraud Consumers and Create Anonymous Spam Relay Networks

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 8, 2003--

MessageLabs Intelligence Analysis Indicates Spam and Virus Threats Will Increase Dramatically in 2004

“The only solution proving effective against today's threats is a proactive, managed service that uses self-learning technology, is continuously updated to stop known and unknown threats and can stop spam, viruses and other threats, at the Internet level before they ever reach corporate networks and end users.”

Highlights of 2003:

-- 77 percent increase in year-to-year spam volume largely attributed to Sobig.F, first virus to have 1 million copies stopped in a 24-hour period by MessageLabs

-- Two-thirds of all spam now coming from open proxies created by viruses

-- Ratio of virus-infected emails to clean emails increased 84 percent to 1 in 33, against 1 in 212 a year ago

MessageLabs' just released Year in Review numbers for 2003 show record-breaking spam volume, viruses on the upswing and converged threats increasingly being use to defraud consumers, steal identities and create hidden networks of infected computers to send spam.

Highlights of 2003 include: Sobig.F breaking a world record in August to become the fastest spreading virus ever with one million copies stopped in a single 24-hour period by MessageLabs. At its peak, 1 in every 17 emails stopped by MessageLabs contained a copy of SoBig.F. By December 1, more than 32 million emails containing the virus had been stopped by MessageLabs, putting Sobig.F at head of the Top 10 Viruses List for 2003.

Spam hit a historic milestone in May, accounting for 50% of all business email traffic for the first time. Today, approximately two-thirds of all spam is being sent by open proxies created in part by viruses such as SoBig.F. This convergence of spam and viruses helps spammers cover their tracks and remain invisible to authorities.

Top 10 Viruses of 2003      No. of Virus Interceptions

1. W32/Sobig.F-mm           32,432,730
2. W32/Swen.A-mm             4,184,129
3. W32/Klez.H-mm             4,006,766
4. W32/Yaha.E-mm             1,920,424
5. W32/Dumaru.A-mm           1,129,061
6. W32/Mimail.A-mm           1,052,481
7. W32/Yaha.M-mm               862,682
8. W32/Sobig.A-mm              842,729
9. W32/BugBear.B-mm            814,865
10. W32/SirCam.A-mm            511,578

Spam Data for 2003

Globally averaged spam figures for 2003 are even more dramatic. During the year:

-- The spam to email ratio exceeded 50% for the first time ever in May (a ratio of 1:1.8)

-- The spam to email ratio for 2003 averaged out to 1 in 2.5 emails, up from 1 in 11 for 2002, an increase of 74%

-- MessageLabs stopped 27 spam emails per second, up from 2 per second last year

-- More than two-thirds of all spam was sent through hijacked computers, unbeknownst to their owners

Predictions for 2004

MessageLabs predicts that by April of next year, 70 percent of Internet e-mail traffic will be spam, up from more than 55 percent today, in spite of new U.S. and European legislation aimed at canning spam.

Other trends likely to grow in 2004 include identity theft scams that use fraudulent email messages to trick people into going to what they think is a legitimate vendor's web site and providing confidential account information. One scam, known as "phishing," targeted multiple banks in late 2003. Another converged threat used the Mimail.J virus to create fraudulent email messages to PayPal customers that asked for credit card and social security numbers.

Commenting on the 2003 findings, Mark Sunner, Chief Technology Officer for MessageLabs, said:

"The massive rise in the volume of viruses and spam is serious but only tells half the story. What 2003 will be remembered for is the new 'nightmare scenario' that has emerged for all email users. The convergence of virus and spam techniques has led to a much more sophisticated threat - the impact of which many companies have yet to grasp.

"SoBig.F, the pre-eminent example of this convergence, sought not only to infect a machine and propagate further through mass mailing techniques, but to compromise systems by exploiting open proxies. This backdoor route turns infected PCs into spam relay engines - causing individual users concern, as well as security breaches and lost bandwidth and productivity for organizations.

"Email threats designed for identity theft purposes were virtually unheard of a year ago. They now appear to be a growing trend, the latest incident of which used Mimail.J to dupe PayPal users into providing confidential information. Over the last 60 days alone, there have been at least a dozen headline-generating incidents involving banks, auction houses and online payment companies as victims of online fraud, despite efforts to implement best practices and educate consumers on how to protect themselves.

"Despite the anti-spam legislation enacted in Europe and soon to be passed in the U.S., companies are having to fight email security threats that are growing in number, designed to bypass most existing desktop and gateway products and carrying even more devious payloads. Traditional anti-virus or anti-spam solutions are failing to secure corporate assets because they are primarily reactive.

"The only solution proving effective against today's threats is a proactive, managed service that uses self-learning technology, is continuously updated to stop known and unknown threats and can stop spam, viruses and other threats, at the Internet level before they ever reach corporate networks and end users."

About MessageLabs Intelligence

MessageLabs has become a highly respected source of data and analysis for email security issues, trends and statistics through its MessageLabs Intelligence division. Since gaining worldwide recognition as the first company to stop and name the "LoveBug" virus in May 2000, MessageLabs has played a crucial role in alerting the public to the dangers of every virus and email threat since, including the "Anna Kournikova," "Sircam," "Nimda," "Bugbear," "klez," "Yaha," "Fizzer" and "SoBig" virus outbreaks.

MessageLabs Intelligence draws on live data feeds from MessageLabs' global network of control towers, which scan millions of emails everyday, and provide the latest and most comprehensive news and analysis available on email security threats. The company provides a full suite of information and statistics, including spam, virus and email pornography growth and trends by region and vertical industry, a comprehensive threat list and, in the event of a new outbreak, an email notification service. MessageLabs Intelligence publishes information on the MessageLabs Web site and offers a range of subscription services.

About MessageLabs

MessageLabs is the leading provider of managed email security and management services to businesses worldwide. The company currently protects more than 7,500 businesses worldwide from email threats such as viruses, spam and other unwanted content before they reach their networks and without requiring additional hardware or software. Powered by a global network of control towers that currently spans the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Hong Kong, MessageLabs scans tens of millions of emails a day on behalf of customers such as The British Government, The Bank of New York, EMI Music, HealthPartners, StorageTek, Air Products and Chemicals, SC Johnson, Conde Nast Publications, Fujitsu and Diageo.

For more information on MessageLabs and its industry-leading email security and management services, please visit http://www.messagelabs.com.