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Microsoft Report Reveals Resurgence of Worms;

Rogue Security Software Still Top Threat 

The latest Security Intelligence Report also highlights success with customer disinfection rates and software update diligence.

REDMOND, Wash. —Nov. 2, 2009 —Microsoft Corp. today released the seventh volume of the

Microsoft Security Intelligence Report (SIRv7), which indicates that worm infections in the enterprise

rose by nearly 100 percent during the first half of 2009 over the preceding six months. Rogue

security software remains a major threat to customers; however, 20 percent fewer customers were

affected by rogue infections during the past six months.

In addition, the Zlob family of trojans, considered a top threat two years ago, has drastically declined

due to Microsoft’s work to aggressively clean customer machines and customers’ diligence in applying

software updates.

SIRv7 provides a deep, accurate view of the threat landscape country by country. For the first time,

this report shares security best practices from countries that have consistently exhibited low malware

infection. These best practices and security intelligence provide a valuable resource for business

leaders who need to make accurate decisions based on the threats that are most pressing today.

 “It’s been said that knowledge is power — and when it comes to security intelligence, a lack of 

accurate information can be detrimental to separating real threats from hype,” said Vinny Gullotto,

general manager of the Microsoft Malware Protection Center. “Microsoft is committed to providing not

only security intelligence for our customers and the community, but also the most accurate and

comprehensive view of the realities of the threat landscape.”  

The security intelligence contained in SIRv7 is collected through a broad community of customers

around the globe who share Microsoft’s goal of obtaining the most accurate view of the threat

landscape. Reporting mechanisms for the Microsoft Security Intelligence Report are diverse and

comprehensive, including Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT), on 450 million

computers worldwide; Bing, which performed billions of Web page scans during the past six months;

Windows Live OneCare and Windows Defender, operating on more than 100 million computers

worldwide; Forefront Online Protection for Exchange and Forefront Client Security, scanning billions of 

e-mail messages yearly; and Windows Live Hotmail, operating in more than 30 countries with

hundreds of millions of active e-mail users.

Top Global Trends 

Ten years after Melissa appeared and defined mass-mailing worms as a class of malicious threats,

worm infections have resurged to become the second most prevalent threat for enterprises in the

first half of 2009. Worms rely heavily on access to unsecured file shares and removable storage

volumes, both of which are plentiful in enterprise environments. According to SIRv7, the following

were the top two families detected:•  Conficker was the top worm threat detected for the enterprise, because its method of propagation

works more effectively within a firewalled network environment. Conficker is not in the top 10 for

consumers, because home computers are more likely to have automatic updating enabled. This

further reiterates the need for enterprises to have a robust security update management program

in place.•  Taterf, with detections up 156 percent since the second half of 2008, targets massively multiplayer

online role-playing games (MMORPGs). These attacks rely less on social engineering to spread, and

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applications and customer-developed internal applications.

•  Ensure that a customer’s development team is using the Security Development Lifecycle

(SDL),http://www.microsoft.com/sdl , or a similar software security assurance process.

•  Ensure that policies are in place to help secure all file shares and regulate the use of removable

media. Install AutoPlay update to help regulate automatic initiation of potentially dangerous

removable media.A full list of Microsoft’s guidance, a downloadable version of SIRv7 and other related resources are

available at http://www.microsoft.com/sir.