BitDefender - Spam Rates Undisturbed During H2-2009

BitDefender, an Internet security company, released its new report during the end week of December 2009 according to which there was no change in the spam scenario during the second half of 2009 (July-December 2009).

The total spam worldwide was responsible for 88.9% of all e-mails. The most common type of spam was text-based spam. Conversely, image spam contributed 2.3-2.5% of total spam during H2-2009, reports BitDefender.

During the period, spammers particularly capitalized on national and international events using them as baits for enticing people into viewing malicious e-mails. Following the demise of Pop King Michael Jackson, spammers launched a significant spam campaign. During July 2009, BitDefender detected several spam campaigns apparently presenting additional information about the anonymous murderer of Jackson, but in reality they displayed ads for sexual-enhancement medications.

BitDefender states that the ten classifications of spam, which spammers abused most in H2-2009, were medicine spam, malware-embedded spam, phishing link-embedded spam, product spam, software spam, education spam, employment spam, insurance or loan spam, dating spam and pornography spam.

Moreover, BitDefender reports that the products most advertised through spam during the second half of 2009 belonged to Canadian Pharmacies. The junk e-mails promoted mainly male-enhancement drugs like substitutes for Viagra, Levitra and Cialis.

This area of spam, says BitDefender, is very lucrative as the products ordered by the customers online actually don't reach them. Besides, making payments online for these products proves beneficial to the spammer who gets hold of the customers' credit card details which he then uses to illegally withdraw money.

While a third of all spam mails came from Vietnam and the USA, the last ranking countries during H2-2009 were Spain, Poland and Argentina which contributed nearly 6%. Russia saw a minor decline to 3.9% from 4.2% in January-June 2009.

Raising alarm for computer users, Vlad Vlceanu, Head of anti-spam Research Lab at BitDefender, said that users needed to be extra careful and ensure that high-quality anti-spam software were in place, while using the Internet, as reported by SecurityProNews on December 28, 2009.

Related article: BitDefender Releases March malware List

» SPAMfighter News - 1/4/2010