Symantec Says Amount Of Spam Has Decreased
Have you noticed less spam in your inbox lately? According to Symantec’s November Intelligence Report, the rate of spam worldwide is close to a three-year low. Symantec notes that spam currently encompasses 70 percent of all emails. Compared to 2009 when spam accounted for 90 percent of all global emails, this is a significant drop. After the spam hosting IPS McColo was shut down in 2008, spam levels reached a low of 68 percent.
The report also shows that the type of spam we’re receiving is changing. In November, Pharmaceutical spam was the most common, comprising 32.5 percent followed by watches and jewelry. Unsolicited newsletters, adult/sex/dating spam messages, and weight loss spam rounded out the top five types of spam.
Phishing is also on the rise globally. In November, the global phishing rate increased by 0.04 percentage points. On average, one in 302 emails, or 0.33 percent of messages, contained some form of a phishing attack. South Africa was the most targeted for phishing attacks in November.
The report also noted that malicious web sites are increasing. Each day, Symantec blocks about 4,915 malicious web sites, which marks an increase of 47.8 percent in just one month. November also saw a four-fold increase in the number of daily targeted attacks since January.
