Most Malware Hosted On Trusted Sites
As the folklore of the Web goes, one contracts a computer virus in places analogous to where one might contract certain types of real viruses: in "bad" neighborhoods one shouldn't be in the first place. But times are changing, and though New York City cleaned up Times Square, cybercrooks are setting up shop in some of the Web's busiest places.
Symantec's MessageLabs says the assumption most web-based malware originates from recently created, temporary, trashy adult sites is becoming an old-fashioned notion. Modern hackers are focusing on well-established, trusted websites they can compromise-sites users trust every day of the week.
According to data collected last week, 84.6 percent of website domains blocked by security programs for hosting malicious content were over a year old. Only 15.4 percent were less than a year old, 10.2 percent less than a month, and 3.1 percent less than a week.
