India under grip of cyber-attacks: Report

Though PC is still the prevalent target for malware authors, there is an obvious peak in the growth of malware and their modifications on mobile devices, especially on the Android platform, The Quick Heal Annual Windows and Mobile Malware Report, 2012, released by Quick Heal Technologies, a leading player in India's anti-virus segment said Mumbai.

As per the findings, there has been a persistent increase in the number of malware attacks on the Google Android platform and mobile applications have become the easiest way to compromise devices, the report said.

According to the Report, social engineering still remains one of the most coveted ways of spreading malware. Cyber criminals continue to use it as a convenient way of exploiting human behaviour and platform vulnerabilities.

The report reveals that India is under the grip of cyber attacks with increase of almost 90 percent in Windows malware and a mind-boggling increase of 170 percent in its modifications and the bad guys are also winning the war in the mobile platform.

Virus attacks in the mobile space have started soaring at a rapid pace with 30 percent growth registered in 2012 and 80 percent increase in its modifications.

Commenting on the findings of the research, Sanjay Katkar, Technical Director and CTO, Quick Heal Technologies, said "Windows is still the most attacked Operating System. 2012 saw numerous attacks that were devised for windows vulnerabilities. Cyber criminals have leveraged zero-day exploits even more effectively with new software patterns and business models".

The web is still the most conventional way of targeting victims and our efforts should be driven to educate the end users and create awareness, Katkar said.