2009 Antispyware Coalition Public Workshop Jeffrey Fox Technology Editor, Consumer Reports Media contact: Lauren Hackett, 914-378-2561
Background For several years, Consumer Reports has been testing and rating antispam and other protection software. 2002 2003 2004 Antivirus Antispam Anti-spyware
In September 2004, we began publishing the annual Consumer Reports State of the Net report Based on a nationally representative survey measuring the incidence and costs to American consumers of spam, viruses, spyware, and phishing scams Conducted by the
Results of the 2009 Consumer Reports State of the Net survey appear in the June, 2009 issue of CONSUMER REPORTS and at ConsumerReports.org.
The June 2009 CONSUMER REPORTS also features our 8 th annual investigative report on U.S. cybersecurity, plus Ratings of the latest security software. (Ratings are available online to ConsumerReports.org subscribers)
We also offer a free Online Security Guide at: ConsumerReports.org/security
The big picture: A summary of how cybercrime has affected U.S. consumers over the past five years
Consumer Net Threats: 2005-2009 45.0 40.0 35.0 Number of U.S. Households that have experienced serious online problems (millions) 30.0 25.0 20.0 15.0 HEAVY SPAM COSTLY VIRUS INFECTION COSTLY SPYWARE INFECTION PHISHING (Lost $/acct. misused) PHISHING (Disclosed personal info) 10.0 5.0 0.0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: Consumer Reports 2005-2009 State of the Net
The cost: staggering 9.0 Cost to U.S. Consumers ($ billions) (over previous two years) 8.0 7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 PHISHING (Lost $) SPYWARE VIRUS 2.0 1.0 0.0 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: Consumer Reports 2006-2009 State of the Net
How does spyware affect U.S. consumers?
Online households where someone was harrassed or harmed by someone monitoring their online activities (projected) Significant malicious monitoring of online consumers Someone in household harrassed or harmed due to online monitoring 1,000,000 800,000 682,000 600,000 400,000 200,000 271,000 283,000 335,000 0 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports 2006-2009 State of the Net
Are spyware infections on the rise or declining?
Percent with spyware infection in past 6 months Fewer spyware infections Incidence of Spyware 100 80 60 52 40 39 34 29 30 20 0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2005-2009
How many consumers are protecting themselves against spyware?
Percent using spyware detection or removal software Most use anti-spyware software Anti-spyware use 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 66 65 67 64 65 41 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
A six-year analysis of our surveys provides some other GOOD NEWS: Consumers are getting smarter about protecting their computers against spam, hackers, and viruses
Percent receiving spam in past month who clicked on a link in it to request removal from the list Fewer are clicking on links in spam Trying to Stop Spam by Clicking on an Opt-out Link 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 44 39 37 28 29 25 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
Percent receiving spam in past month who replied to it to request removal from the list Fewer are replying to spam Trying to Stop Spam by Replying to it 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 38 28 26 17 17 13 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
Percent who used a spam-blocking filter on their computer Many use a spam blocker Use of a Spam-Blocking Filter 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 65 62 62 59 59 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2005-2009
Percent who had a firewall installed on their computer Most are using a firewall Firewall Use 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 86 87 81 83 73 59 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
Percent using antivirus software Many use an antivirus Antivirus use 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 83 80 83 81 82 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2005-2009
But our analysis also provides some BAD NEWS: A lot of consumers still engage in behaviors that help the bad guys
Percent receiving spam in past month who ordered a product or service advertised in spam Many still patronize spammers Patronizing Spammers 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 3 2 2 1 1 1 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Note: 2009 figure represents more than 1/2 million households Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
Percent submitting personal info in response to an e-mail that was found fraudulent and many still respond to phishers Percent who Submitted Personal Info to a Phishing-style E-mail 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 7 8 8 8 8 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2005-2009
Percent who never click on a link in e-mail from financial institution that refers to their own account Too few are savvy enough to avoid links embedded in e-mail Avoiding risky links in e-mail 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 38 2008 2009 46 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2008-2009
Percent who turn off the computer when not in use Only half turn off their PC Turning off the computer 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 58 49 46 47 43 48 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2004-2009
Here are some of our most recent findings
Online households that received more than 25 spam text messages on their cell phone in the past 6 mos. (projected) Millions Cell-phone spam Not as widespread as e-mail spam Prevalence of heavy cell-phone spam 2 1 1.2 1.0 0 2008 2009 Year Source: Consumer Reports State of the Net, 2008-2009
Online Identity Theft We project close to 2 million households suffered ID theft in the past year due to Internet-related activity Most common cause: Online shopping Other causes: hackers, scam e-mail, and online financial transaction Source: Consumer Reports 2009 State of the Net
Social networks 36 percent of online households use them 13 percent of respondents who use them reported some type of abuse Most common of these abuses: Spammers using one s friends list to send junk mail Other abuses: Unauthorized use of a profile; malware infection from a downloaded application Source: Consumer Reports 2009 State of the Net
Twitter spam Social networks become a new platform for cybercrime Fake celebrity postings on LinkedIn leads users to malware Source: My personal e-mail In-box
You can help Consumer Reports continue our research: We are planning our 2010 State of the Net Survey. We welcome suggestions. Please send them to Jeff Fox at: jf@pipeline.com