Majority of U.S. Adult Computer Users Are Unprotected from Malware: Study

65 Percent of Computer Users with an Antivirus Program on Their Computer Have Postponed Updating Their Software

WebKnowHow
Tuesday, July 18, 2006; 02:36 AM

According to a recent survey sponsored by security software provder ESET and conducted by Harris Interactive, U.S. computer users should be on high alert. The vast majority of U.S. adult computer users (88%) have an antivirus program installed on their personal computer, but about two in three (65%) have postponed updating their antivirus program, thus leaving them unprotected from the growing maliciousness of today's online threats.

While about one in five computer users (19%) estimate that there are 10,000 unique forms of malware discovered daily, the study suggests that they just don't seem to care. In fact, 65 percent of those who have an antivirus program on their computer have postponed updating it, and 42 percent have been affected by malware when they had an antivirus program on their computer. ESET's threat lab data indicates that on average there is upwards of 10,000 unique forms of malware globally each day, putting consumers at serious risk from viruses, spyware, keyloggers, Trojans, phishing attacks and other criminally motivated online threats. Yet, a majority of computer users with an antivirus program on their machine are not vigilant about updating the antivirus solution they use.

"Overall, the research shows that many consumers have a false sense of security while online," said Andrew Lee, chief research officer at ESET. "With the number of zero-day threats rapidly increasing, users need to be even more cautious and proactive in their own protection."

Harris Interactive fielded the online survey among a nationwide sample of 2,079 U.S. adult computer users 18 years of age or older. The survey reveals that:

    -- Despite 55 percent being very confident or confident in the
       protection offered by the antivirus program on their computer,
       42 percent have been affected by malware.

    -- A surprising 65 percent have postponed updating their virus
       protection. Of these adults, their top reasons for not
       updating are:

    --  It was too disruptive to what they were doing on the
    computer 38%

    --  They thought it was something that could wait 32%

    --  They thought it would take too long 27%

    --  They weren't sure how to update the antivirus program 14%

"The research shocked me, as it shows that while the majority of people have antivirus protection, most have been infected and still do not regularly update their AV solution," said Andreas Marx, CEO, AV-Test.org. "This signals that the AV industry in general is letting consumers down by not providing easy-to-update software that won't disrupt other applications."

Harris Interactive fielded the online survey on behalf of ESET between June 1 and June 5, 2006 among a nationwide sample of 2,079 U.S. adults 18 years of age or older, of whom 1,884 have an antivirus program installed on their personal computer. The data were weighted to be representative of the total U.S. adult population of computer users on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity, and amount of time spent using a computer (hours per week).