1 September 2003
Top ten viruses and hoaxes reported to Sophos in August 2003
This is the latest in a series of monthly charts counting down the ten most frequently occurring viruses and hoaxes as compiled by Sophos, a global leader in anti-virus protection for businesses.
For August 2003, the chart is as follows, with the most frequently occurring virus at number one:
"August 2003 will be remembered as one of the worst months in the history of computer security. A series of different viruses have bombarded computer systems around the globe, culminating in the newest member of the Sobig family which swamped internet email traffic and took the pole position in the chart. The top four viruses are all new entries - any of which would have been number one in a normal month," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos Anti-Virus. "The Sobig-F worm clogged up inboxes and crippled networks with the sheer volume of email traffic it produced. Users and companies should remain on guard and put systems in place to protect against future attacks."
Sophos analysed and protected against 778 new viruses in August. The total number it now protects against is 84,277.
The top ten hoaxes reported to Sophos during August 2003 are as follows:
"Bill Gates seems to be a target for hoax writers and virus writers alike. While the Blaster worm capitalised on a flaw in Microsoft's software and attempted to knock one of their websites off the internet, two hoaxes about Bill Gates are still circulating." continued Cluley.
Sophos has made available a free, constantly updated information feed for intranets and websites which means users can always find out about the latest viruses and hoaxes.
Graphics of the virus top ten chart are available here.
More information about safe computing, including anti-hoax policies.
About Sophos
Sophos enables enterprises all over the world to secure and control their IT infrastructure. Sophos's network access control, endpoint, web and email solutions simplify security to provide integrated defenses against malware, spyware, intrusions, unwanted applications, spam, policy abuse, data leakage and compliance drift. With over 20 years of experience, Sophos protects over 100 million users in nearly 150 countries with its reliably engineered security
solutions and services. Recognized for its high level of customer satisfaction and powerful yet easy-to-use solutions, Sophos has received many industry awards, as well as positive reviews and certifications.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com
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