UK’s Anti-spam Company Criticizes US on Spreading Phishing

The US is the largest initiator of efforts to capture private banking information by means of email, reveal figures released by ClearMyMail, Britain's reputed anti-spam company.

ClearMyMail has stated that for a while now, phishing mails are mostly originating from United States, putting the estimate of these types of emails at 54%.

Spain figures as the second largest perpetrator at 3.8%, with Germany and Korea both close at heels at 2.9% and 2.8% respectively. France ranks fifth with 2.7%, with China coming next at 2.7%, Russia following at 2.5%, then Japan at 2.2%, Uruguay at second last with 1.8% and Britain at the end of the list with 1.4%.

ClearMyMail is appealing to all Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and the British Government to collaborate with their international counterparts in order to restrict phishing strikes. Channel Register reported on October 18, 2007, ClearMyMail's Managing Director, Dan Field, commented that it is quite reasonable not to expect any collaborative effort to stop this occurrence from developing nations, but when countries like USA leads the list of non collaborators, then it's disappointing to find them not being coming forth to check this trouble despite having the aids to free the world of such offenders.

As per ClearMyMail.com, the mail servers of several ISPs are vulnerable and as a result, anybody can transfer message through them. Sometimes they may realize that their messaging tool is being exploited to spam other nations, but don't prevent it as they're getting money, the company alleged.

China faces more problems, with its mushrooming net users is mainly targeted by emails holding viruses.

Viruses frequently develop botnets that are utilized by hackers/spammers to transmit deluge of mails, all unprotected and unimpeded.

Another survey of phishing trends by Britain's leading security company Sophos disclosed that eBay and PayPal phishing strikes, the main target of spam emails, are on the decline. During September 2007, just 21% of phishing emails are claimed to have originated from eBay or PayPal. Last year, 85% of the phishing mails claimed to be messages from the two online companies.

Related article: US Passes Baton to Asia in Spam Relay

» SPAMfighter News - 11/6/2007