TREND MICRO WEEKLY VIRUS REPORT: Friday March 24, 2006

Issue Preview: 1. Trend Micro Updates - Pattern File & Scan Engine Updates 2. Spyware & Adware - How the Bad Guys Profit 3. Top 10 Most Prevalent Global Malware 4. Trend Micro Seminar Series -- Multi-Layered Strategies for Effective Security 5. Announcement: Weekly Virus Report Format Change

1. Trend Micro Updates - Pattern File & Scan Engine Updates Pattern File : 3.283.00 Scan engine : 8.000 2. Spyware & Adware - How the Bad Guys Profit Broadly defined, spyware is any software program that surreptitiously monitors and gathers user information. What was once written and installed only by malicious authors seeking to steal users' personal information, adware has emerged as a new and more prominent form of spyware. A slightly less malicious form of spyware, adware can display pop-up advertisements produced by so-called legitimate adware companies. Adware companies are well funded, to the extent that some have even discussed launching multi-million dollar IPOs. The current mix of spyware and adware presents a compelling challenge to both computer users and security companies, because of the lack of clarity about what constitutes legitimate marketing techniques ? and is further complicated by the fact that the rules vary widely throughout the world. A narrow definition of spyware includes programs on a user's computer that report user behavior, such as keystrokes or Web browsing history. According to this definition, some types of spyware may be used for marketing purposes, while other types are used for the purpose of criminal fraud leading to profit making. Trend Micro uses both broad and narrow definitions of spyware, according to Anthony Arrott, Trend Micro's manager of spyware research. "A broad definition of spyware would include adware and Trojan spyware," he explained. "Anything that interferes with the privacy, productivity, or security of your PC can be called spyware - with the caveat that it is non-propagating. Spyware stays on a system as long as it can without being noticed. Also, while viruses and worms are essentially about vandalism, broad-definition spyware is about monetary gain." The story of how the money flows in the spyware cycle involves four contributors or sources. First are the advertisers themselves, and second are the agents they hire to market their products. Third in the spyware food chain is the publishers, the writers of the program 'payload', the crimeware or grayware that actually gets delivered to the user's computer. Fourth are the distributors, who often distribute multiple payloads for a variety of publishers, since they earn their money on a "per install" basis. Spyware and adware were prevalent trends in 2005. According to Trend Micro's research, 29 per cent of the total threat landscape for the year was comprised of spyware and adware. 2005 also saw the use of blended threats, in which malware authors initiated multi-trojan attacks ? including worms that drop or download spyware/adware programs onto systems ? to take advantage of marketing programs that pay a small fee per installation. The trend is likely to continue in 2006 and beyond. Adware-driven campaigns can generate significant amounts of money, and many adware companies are eager to have their products installed in as many PCs as possible. As the threat of spyware and adware continues to grow, it becomes even more critical for computer users to scan any program downloaded through the Internet - including any downloads from P2P networks, via the Web, or any FTP server, regardless of the source - with updated anti-virus and anti-spyware software. If you would like to scan your computer for worms, viruses, Trojans and malicious code, visit HouseCall, Trend Micro's free, online virus scanner at: http://trendnewsletter.rsc03.net/servlet/cc5?lgLQSRBYQTVrjxpuipjLuLKpHQJhuV2 VU 3. Top 10 Most Prevelant Global Malware (from September 30 to October 6, 2005) WORM_NYXEM.E SPYW_DASHBAR.300  SPYW_GATOR.F  HTML_NETSKY.P  WORM_NETSKY.P JAVA_BYTEVER.A  WORM_MOFEI.B  WORM_ANIG.A  EXPL_WMF.GEN  JAVA_BYTEVER.A-1  4. Trend Micro Seminar Series -- Multi-Layered Strategies for Effective Security Join Trend Micro for a free, half-day seminar on the most effective strategies for securing your network against spyware, spam, and other security threats. The series is in full swing with upcoming stops in Washington D.C., Chicago, LA, Orange County CA, San Jose CA, Calgary AB, and Honolulu with additional cities to be added. The seminar will include threat updates and lessons learned in 2005, how best to leverage current investments, why some products are less effective than desired, and an overview of Trend Micro's Enterprise Protection Strategy. To register (and for specific dates/cities), please go to: http://trendnewsletter.rsc03.net/servlet/cc5?lgLQSRBYQTVrjxpuipjLuLKpHQJhuV2 VW 5. Announcement: Weekly Virus Report Format Change Trend Micro is changing the format of the Weekly Virus Report. Beginning in April, the "Weekly Virus Report" will become "First Line of Defense" - a semi-monthly newsletter containing articles and information on recent and emerging threats, as well as advice on how to protect your content from these threats. Trend Micro is interested in your comments regarding the change in frequency of this newsletter (from weekly to twice monthly) as well as the content. Which content attributes do you find most/least helpful (Top 10 threats, threat types, how to protect your computer/personal information from the threats, etc).

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