We'll all be rooned Part II

In yesterday's blog, I drew attention to an article in Business Week in which we learned that research by Microsoft had found that 62% of "home and small business computers" were infected by trojans, and that, even after cleaning, 20% had become reinfected within 15 months.

Furthermore, according to the article, other research had found that much the same percentage of large businesses (62%) were also infected, despite almost all having antivirus protection.

But that's not all, the article told us: according to AusCERT, Australia's Computer Emergency Response Team, the reason for the high level of infections is quite simple: the most popular brands of antivirus products just don't work: the catch only 20% of new viruses. The report added, "AusCERT declined to name the AV companies publicly, but in case you didn't know, the leading AV vendors are Symantec, McAfee, and Trend Micro, in that order."

So OK, that's the article in summary. Hidden inside this tale of woe is a can of worms, which we can examine together over the next little while. For now, let's think the alleged ineffectiveness of the antivirus programs.

For those with eyes to see, recent years have provided many clues that something was seriously wrong on the computer security front:

• Webroot Software Inc., makers of a leading brand of antispyware software, claims that as at August 2006, "89% of consumer PCs" were infected with spyware;
   


• Industry analysts Ciphertrust claims that over a quarter of a million PCs at any one time have been turned into zombies, for use by spammers and others. According to a press release from Senator Helen Coonan, Australian Minister for IT, these zombie computers include many run by ordinary users;
   


• Other industry research suggests that up to one in ten computers may be, at any given moment, infected with some kind of virus.

This leads me to wonder: is it actually possible now to keep computers safe on the Internet, and, if so, under what conditions? This is a question I will return to shortly.

(In the meantime, the title of this article comes from a much-loved Australian poem of the type known as 'bush ballads'.)