Spyware is here to stay: IDC analyst
By Jason Tan
The China Post
The worldwide spyware market is expected to grow to US$305 million in revenues in 2008, a huge leap from US$12 million in 2003.
According to the latest statistics from technology research firm International Data Corp (IDC), spyware has become the fourth greatest threat to enterprise network security, after virus, human errors and Internet worms.
Spyware is expected to climb up its ranking and become one of the top threats to enterprises, if more people are involved in Internet transactions in the future, informed Alan Tsao, IDC Taiwan's senior analyst.
"Spyware happens to everyone and every organization, regardless of the size and industry, as long as they connect to the Internet," he said.
He added that its survey has revealed that as high as 67 percent of all computers have some forms of spyware, but even that number only reflects users that are aware of its existence.
Spyware has become more rampant in the second half of last year. It is software that covertly gathers user information through the Internet without their knowledge, usually for advertising purposes.
These applications are typically bundled as a hidden component of free or share software programs that can be downloaded from the Web.
"Spyware is here to stay. It is not a serious hacking challenge for most programmers and it is a profitable revenue source for legitimate corporations such as online marketing and advertising firms," noted Tsao.
In view of the rising threats of spyware, a number of security solution providers are expected to jump onto the rush to introduce anti-spyware products.
According to Tsao, the total industry value of anti-spyware solutions will amount to US$300 million in 2008, increasing drastically from a mere US$26 million of last year.
And more vendors will introduce integrated security solutions with anti-spyware feature into the market, instead of just standalone spyware products.
"Enterprises will find that integrated solutions are able to offer them a lower cost of ownership, as well as lower management and maintenance efforts. These products will present them central consoles to manage multiple security products across a network," he continued.
Trend Micro, a provider of antivirus and Internet security software and services, announced in early May that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the developer of antispyware solutions InterMute.
InterMute's technology will further enhance Trend Micro's antispyware solutions for business customers and consumers, the latter said in a press release.
It added it plans to offer InterMute's standalone antispyware products under the Trend Micro brand. It will also integrate InterMute's antispyware capabilities into its solutions for enterprises, small and medium-sized businesses, as well as consumers.
Meanwhile, Computer Associates, a management software company, also bought privately owned vulnerability management firm Pest Patrol last year.
The company said that increased chatter from corporations regarding spyware had prompted Computer Associates to purchase Pest Patrol, which has solutions protecting against such applications, among other threats.
The China Post
The worldwide spyware market is expected to grow to US$305 million in revenues in 2008, a huge leap from US$12 million in 2003.
According to the latest statistics from technology research firm International Data Corp (IDC), spyware has become the fourth greatest threat to enterprise network security, after virus, human errors and Internet worms.
Spyware is expected to climb up its ranking and become one of the top threats to enterprises, if more people are involved in Internet transactions in the future, informed Alan Tsao, IDC Taiwan's senior analyst.
"Spyware happens to everyone and every organization, regardless of the size and industry, as long as they connect to the Internet," he said.
He added that its survey has revealed that as high as 67 percent of all computers have some forms of spyware, but even that number only reflects users that are aware of its existence.
Spyware has become more rampant in the second half of last year. It is software that covertly gathers user information through the Internet without their knowledge, usually for advertising purposes.
These applications are typically bundled as a hidden component of free or share software programs that can be downloaded from the Web.
"Spyware is here to stay. It is not a serious hacking challenge for most programmers and it is a profitable revenue source for legitimate corporations such as online marketing and advertising firms," noted Tsao.
In view of the rising threats of spyware, a number of security solution providers are expected to jump onto the rush to introduce anti-spyware products.
According to Tsao, the total industry value of anti-spyware solutions will amount to US$300 million in 2008, increasing drastically from a mere US$26 million of last year.
And more vendors will introduce integrated security solutions with anti-spyware feature into the market, instead of just standalone spyware products.
"Enterprises will find that integrated solutions are able to offer them a lower cost of ownership, as well as lower management and maintenance efforts. These products will present them central consoles to manage multiple security products across a network," he continued.
Trend Micro, a provider of antivirus and Internet security software and services, announced in early May that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the developer of antispyware solutions InterMute.
InterMute's technology will further enhance Trend Micro's antispyware solutions for business customers and consumers, the latter said in a press release.
It added it plans to offer InterMute's standalone antispyware products under the Trend Micro brand. It will also integrate InterMute's antispyware capabilities into its solutions for enterprises, small and medium-sized businesses, as well as consumers.
Meanwhile, Computer Associates, a management software company, also bought privately owned vulnerability management firm Pest Patrol last year.
The company said that increased chatter from corporations regarding spyware had prompted Computer Associates to purchase Pest Patrol, which has solutions protecting against such applications, among other threats.
posted by jason tan @ 4:20 AM
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