The latest Bagle variant was the most notable new virus in October, although the month was relatively quiet overall.
Although it only emerged at the end of the month, the variant still proved pervasive enough to warrant a top 10 listing on anti-virus (AV) vendor Kaspersky Labs` top 20 viruses in October. However, the virus is now tapering off and is unlikely to feature greatly in November.
There were few surprises at the top of AV vendors` lists, with Netsky, Zafi and Bagle proving extremely resilient, says Brett Myroff, CEO of local Sophos distributor Netxactics.
"These viruses are so prevalent and well established that it is very difficult for newer viruses to compete. It may be that unprotected PCs in areas where computer security is not a top priority are responsible for keeping the menace alive."
The modem virus, which hijacks modems and dials international premium-rated numbers without users` knowledge, came to light on the local front in October. The virus originally surfaced a few months ago, and while reports of the virus were minimal, it opened the possibility for more infectious variants in the future, says Y3K MD Ryan Price.
"This particular virus was not serious in terms of infections - it probably only affected people who have no AV and maybe also leave their PCs on all the time. But the threat is now there and a better virus writer could do a lot more damage."
According to Sophos, 1 131 new viruses appeared in October, with figures showing that over 4.6% - or one in 22 e-mails - circulating during the month of October were viral. "When this figure is compared to those of the last few months, a noticeable reduction in viral e-mail traffic can be seen - in July, over 9% of e-mails were viral," Myroff adds.
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