Websites ‘are increasingly popular malware methods’

Published on 13 December 2011.

According to one expert, cyber criminals are increasingly looking to spread viruses via websites.

Companies looking to increase their data security may be interested to hear how most computer viruses are transmitted using drive-by download.

This is according to director of Data Defender Graeme Batsman, who explained that cyber criminals have become more sophisticated and no longer rely solely on spreading malware via email attachments.

“Day-to-day, we visit tens of websites and it is estimated one in ten websites is infected or more,” he warned, adding that drive-by downloads are when a website is “hijacked” and any user who visits the portal becomes a target.

It was suggested this can lead to “a chain reaction” as the virus will spread through sites and possibly from PC to PC.

Mr Batsman described how malware infections make up a large percentage of cyber attacks, with most coming from multiple angles, including websites and phones.

Associate of the Centre for Cyber Security Mark Dampster recently urged companies to focus on improving their data security.

Posted by Clive Notting