Worm Infections Double In First Half Of Year: Microsoft

Microsoft's latest Security intelligence Report confirms what we all know: worms are spreading faster and faster, and although rogue anti-virus scams remain the top threat, the rate of worm infection doubled in the first six months of 2009.98.4% -- that's how much the number of worm infections increased in the first half of this year, according to the latest Microsoft Security Intelligence Report.

The figures are based on Windows/Vista machines, obviously; according to Microsoft, the level of Vista infections was substantially lower than that for XP-based machines.

The persistence of Conficker is borne out by the worm's placement as the top infection agent.

Worldwide, rogue anti-virus scams remain the most prevalent threat, although the number of people falling for the pop-up attacks actually declined a bit.

One interesting finding that falls into the department of "how many times do you have to be told?": the higher (most recent) the service pack on a machine, the lower the rate of infection.

The more frequent -- read constant, and obsessively so -- your attention to maintenance, updates, and patches, the less vulnerable your systems are.

The complete Microsoft Security Intelligence Report, v.7 can be downloaded here.