Sophos notes that the number of compromised PCs continues to rise
steadily in Europe. An image showing the continent’s zombie
computers that relayed spam during a 30-minute period is available
from:
http://www.sophos.com/news/2007/07/dirtydozjul07.html
According to Sophos, the overall global volume of spam rose by around
9 percent during Q2 2007, when compared to the same period in 2006.
The top twelve spam-relaying countries are as follows:
April to June 2007
1. United States 19.6%
2. China (including Hong Kong) 8.4%
3. South Korea 6.5%
4. Poland 4.8%
5. Germany 4.2%
6. Brazil 4.1%*
7. France 3.3%
8. Russia 3.1%
9. Turkey 2.9%
10. United Kingdom 2.8%
=10. Italy 2.8%
12. India 2.5%
Other 35.0%
"While the US remains top spam dog, the latest chart emphasises
the urgent need for joined-up global action to combat this growing
problem," said Carole Theriault, senior security consultant at Sophos.
"For every spam campaign, the spammers, the compromised computers used,
and the people being deluged by the unsolicited mail are often located
in totally different parts of the world. A consolidated effort is needed
not only to pursue and prosecute spammers, but also to convince computer
users everywhere of the importance of blocking rather than responding to
spam messages. Everyone has a part to play if we are to win the global
battle against spam."
According to Sophos, the growing number of PCs across the US and Europe,
combined with an increase in the amount of internet service providers
offering cheap internet access - not all of which have taken adequate
steps to prevent spam-relaying activity - are responsible for the
strong Euro-American presence in the dirty dozen.
"Once a machine is compromised, it is often used to send out spam for
a variety of campaigns," continued Theriault. "In a matter of seconds,
we can see compromised systems send messages on a dozen different
topics, from stock scams and cheap mortgages, to saucy porn and diet
drugs. Internet service providers seriously need to examine whether
they’re doing enough to monitor whether their users are unwittingly
relaying spam as well as educate them about the how to defend their
home PCs."
While there have been minor shifts in individual nations’ chart
positions, the biggest single change occurs in the ’other’ section,
which has risen from 30.6 percent in Q1 2007 to 35.0 percent in Q2.
This suggests that on an individual level, more nations are now responsible
for contributing to the problem of spam-relaying. Additionally, having
disappeared from the chart in Q1, the United Kingdom has re-entered the
dirty dozen in tenth place, responsible for relaying 2.8 percent of the
world’s spam.
SPAM RELAYED BY CONTINENT
Despite the strong presence of the US and European nations in the dirty
dozen itself, the sheer number of Asian nations relaying smaller amounts
of spam meant that Asia proved to be the biggest spam-relaying continent
during Q2 2007. While Europe, which topped the chart in Q1 2007, has
reduced its percentage by 6.6 percent and fallen to second place, Asia,
North America, South America and Africa have all seen rises in
spam-relaying
activity. Sophos experts predict further levelling of these statistics
over the coming months, as spammers start to take advantage of the growing
number of inadequately protected computers in the likes of South America
and Africa.
The breakdown of spam-relaying by continent is as follows:
April to June 2007
1. Asia 35.2%
2. Europe 28.5%
3. North America 24.2%
4. South America 9.6%
5. Africa 1.6%
Other 0.9%
Sophos recommends that computer users ensure they keep their security
software up-to-date, as well as using a properly configured firewall and
installing the latest operating system security patches. Businesses must
also look to implement a best practice policy regarding email account
usage.
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