Pornography, Search Engines Top List of Restricted Websites Employees Attempt to Access
LONDON and SAN MATEO, Calif.--July 12, 2006 -- ScanSafe Inc., the global leader in managed Web security, today released its latest Global Threat Report on Web filtering, spyware and viruses. The report is based on real-time analysis of more than five billion Web requests processed by the company in June and represents the largest analysis of Web security threats based on real-world Web traffic. According to the ScanSafe Threat Center, Web viruses increased 13 percent in June and the company blocked more than 300 unique Web viruses during the month.
"Our data indicates that virus writers are using smaller, stealthier, higher-frequency attacks," said Eldar Tuvey, CEO and co-founder, ScanSafe. "In the past few months, we haven't seen massive, headline-grabbing outbreaks. However, we have seen a steady stream of low-volume viruses designed to exploit the time between a virus'initial appearance and the release of an anti-virus signature. By leveraging these zero-hour threats, virus writers can strike when users without real-time threat protection are most vulnerable and fly 'under the radar' until an anti-virus signature is released."
Zero-hour threats represent one of the most significant security threats to corporate networks today because they go undetected by the vast majority of security technologies, which rely largely on signatures or a static database of URLs to identify threats. In June, 12 percent of all Web viruses blocked by ScanSafe were detected by Outbreak IntelligenceTM, the company's proprietary heuristics technology that provides real-time scanning and analysis of Web threats, including zero-hour threats--threats that appear before an anti-virus signature is made available.
In addition to emerging threats blocked by Outbreak Intelligence, ScanSafe issued the following list of the top-five Web viruses it blocked for which there are anti-virus signatures:
| Threat |
Percentage of all ScanSafe Web Virus Blocks |
|---|---|
| TrojanDownloader.Win32.Agent.ae | 8.4 percent |
| Exploit.CodeBaseExec | 2.9 percent |
| Exploit.JS.CVE-2005-1790.j | 1.8 percent |
| TrojanDownloader.Win32.VB.dx | 1.6 percent |
| Trojan-Downloader.Win32.Agent.ex | 1.5 percent |
ScanSafe reported a surge in intercepts of the Exploit.JS.CVE-2005-1790.j (aka Troj/Onladv-A), a downloader Trojan that affects Microsoft Windows. Exploit.JS.CVE-2005-1790.j exploits the ONLOAD vulnerability associated with certain versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer to download a file from a remote Website and execute it.
URL Blocks Increase 16 Percent in June; Pornography and Search Engines Top List of Restricted Websites Employees Attempt to Access
ScanSafe reported a 16 percent increase in URL blocks in June and found that 60 percent of companies using its Web Filtering Service had users that attempted, unsuccessfully, to access URLs known to contain pornographic content. Similarly, 58 percent of users attempted to access restricted search engine sites.
"Merely having a written acceptable Internet usage policy is not enough," Tuvey said. "This data highlights the importance of having real-time Web filtering and control tools that ensure acceptable use policies are enforced and that companies are not unnecessarily exposed to unwanted and often offensive Web content."
The ScanSafe Threat Center monitors the global state of Web traffic, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Combining technology as well as analysis from threat technicians, the ScanSafe Threat Center processes more than five billion Web requests each month from 20 countries around the world and provides unparalleled insight into real-time Web threats and usage.
About ScanSafeScanSafe is the global leader in managed Web security, ensuring a safe and productive Internet environment for businesses around the world. The easy-to-use service requires no hardware and delivers real-time, complete protection from the latest Web threats. ScanSafe's solutions keep viruses and spyware off corporate networks and allow businesses to control and secure the use of the Web and instant messaging applications.
Powered by its proactive Outbreak IntelligenceTM heuristic technology, ScanSafe processes more than five billion Web requests and blocks five million threats each month for customers including Rothschild, Condé Nast and BMW.
Since pioneering the market for managed corporate Web security, ScanSafe continues to deliver innovative Web security solutions, including the introduction of ScandooTM - the world's first free secure Internet search tool that classifies search results based on the presence of malware and unwanted content.
With offices in London and San Mateo, California, ScanSafe is privately owned and financed by Benchmark Capital. The company received the 2006 Info Security Global Product Excellence Award for Best Managed Security Service, and was named one of Red Herring's Top 100 Technology companies of 2005.
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