TACOMA, WA, May 08, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) —
IID (Internet Identity(R)), a provider of technology and services
that helps organizations secure their Internet presence, today
released its Q1 eCrime Report that revealed phishing attacks
impersonating email service providers increased 333 percent from Q4
2011 to Q1 2012. IID attributes this spike to spammers needing
unsullied email addresses since many major spamming botnets have been
shut down, and Internet service providers have become more successful
at identifying and blocking email from botnets and other known spam
sources. During the first quarter of 2012, spammers increasingly
tried to hijack “good” email addresses at large webmail services by
impersonating those email service providers and phishing for email
account login credentials.
“Control of a legitimate email address is like spam gold for cyber
criminals,” said IID President and CTO Rod Rasmussen. “It’s pretty
simple why this has become such a valued currency. Filters built to
combat botnet spam have a harder time blocking spam coming from
legitimate email services and email addresses without a history of
abuse.”
Despite the dramatic jump in email service provider phishing, other
industries on average witnessed a decrease in phishing attacks. In
fact, IID’s report found phishing attacks dropped two percent when
comparing statistics from Q1 2011 to Q1 2012.
IID also revealed in its Q1 eCrime Report that 74 of Fortune 500
companies and five of what it considers “major” U.S. federal agencies
still had at least one computer or router on their network infected
with DNSChanger malware as of the end of March. The findings come
ahead of the July 9th deadline, where the FBI will shut down servers
that have allowed users whose computers are infected with DNSChanger
malware to navigate the Internet.
DNSChanger changes the infected system’s domain name system
resolution settings to use formerly rogue servers that redirect
legitimate searches and domains to malicious websites. Not only does
DNSChanger redirect Internet connections, it also disables anti-virus
software, opening individuals and organizations up for more malicious
attacks.
Sources of data and background for the IID 2012 First Quarter eCrime
Trends Report include IID’s own security experts and some of the
world’s leading security and Internet infrastructure organizations
like ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) and
APWG (Anti-Phishing Working Group). The report, along with past
eCrime reports, can be found at
www.internetidentity.com/resources/trend-reports .
About IID
IID (Internet Identity) is trusted by five of the top six
banks in the U.S., the largest government agencies worldwide, and
many of today’s leading financial services firms, e-commerce, social
networking and ISP companies to proactively secure themselves and
their extended enterprise against the latest cyber attacks. It
recently introduced a number of unique Internet infrastructure
security solutions, protecting against always evolving security
threats with ActiveTrust(R) BGP, ActiveTrust DNS, and ActiveTrust
Resolver with TrapTrace. IID has provided anti-phishing, malicious
software (malware) and brand security solutions since the company’s
founding in 1996. With its extensive data, 24-7 security analysts and
deep relationships with law enforcement, service providers and
security experts around the world, IID is unrivaled in keeping the
Internet safe and trusted for businesses. IID is headquartered in
Tacoma, Washington. More information can be found at
www.internetidentity.com .
Contact:
Andrew Goss
VOXUS Inc. (for IID)
253.444.5446
Email Contact
SOURCE: Internet Identity
http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/emailprcntct?id=809C1CBCF01E837A
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