Spam e-mails are a popular method of delivering malicious
software—usually in the form of an attachment or a link pointing
unsuspecting readers toward infected websites. However, a recent study
released by Ipsos Public Affairs Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group (MAAWG) is
shedding disturbing light on the fight against spam as we know it: a staggering
number of users are choosing to open—and sometimes respond to—junk e-mails,
despite years of warning and countless pieces of defense technology.
As most in the fraud prevention
industry are aware, it only takes one prolific piece of spyware to open the
door to a computer for hackers and identity thieves. But according to Cnet
News, this new data shows tens of
millions of Internet users intentionally making themselves vulnerable to viruses,
hacks and identity thieves. Customers and/or employees may be posing
an unintentional, but costly risk, to your business.