Spain and US Hold Top Position for Bot-Infected Systems Worldwide

The latest reports released by security experts from PandaLabs reveal that Spain leads the bot ranking with 44.49% of all systems attacked by bots in the world. Once these programs strike a system, they enable hackers to control the system and conduct several actions which include installing viruses, trojans and worms, sending spam, etc.

The data was complied in October 2009 and comprises infections caused by any of the various families and kinds of bots.

The second ranking is occupied by the US, although a long way behind, with 14.41%, followed by Mexico (9.37%) and Brazil (4.81%). Those countries having smallest infection ratios are Peru, the Netherlands and Sweden - all having ratios under 1% of the infection.

Nevertheless, this is not the first time when Spain and US are among the leading bot-infected countries. In July 2009, Sophos released the list of leading spam-relaying countries in which US was on the top and Spain occupied the eighth place. Other countries which marked their presence on the list were Brazil, China, Turkey, India, Poland, South Korea, Russia, Argentina, Italy and Vietnam.

Technical Director of PandaLabs, Luis Corrons, stated that so far in 2009, together with rogueware, botnet and zombie systems have surged by over 30%, as per the news published by Reuters on November 5, 2009.

He added that this is the simplest method for hackers to control systems to circulate spam or malware, reported All Headline News on November 5, 2009. He declared that they opt for this as it is tougher to identify the real offender.

Corrons also stated that the trouble is that owners of these zombie systems will commit crimes without knowing it, resulting in their services withdrawn by their ISPs or even as dire consequences as prosecution.

Therefore, the security experts at PandaLabs suggest that users should have updated anti-virus program installed on their PCs.

Related article: Spam Scam Bags a Scottish Connection

» SPAMfighter News - 18-11-2009

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