China the largest digital polluter in January 2010

Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of Internet threat management solutions that protect against all forms of malicious software including viruses, spyware, hackers and spam, has revealed that Chinese cybercriminals were the most prolific source of digital pollution on the Internet in January 2010.

Kaspersky Lab continually monitors the IT threat landscape around the clock and each month publishes its malware statistics. In January 2010 China topped the list with a 36.2% share of malware infecting the Internet. The nearest specific originator of malware was Russia at 5.8%, with then UK only attributing 2.4% of the global total.

The results were as follows:

• China – 36.2%
• Russia – 5.8%
• USA – 4.4%
• India – 3.9%
• Germany – 3.9%
• Egypt – 3.2%
• Mexico – 2.9%
• UK – 2.4%
• France – 2.3%
• Turkey – 2.2%
• Other – 32.8%

David Emm a member of the Global Research and Analysis Team at Kaspersky Lab comments: "The results may be surprising for some as traditionally there has been an assumption that a lot of malware and digital pollution came from Russia and east European countries. Our figures suggest the largest share comes from China – which at 36.2% is much bigger than any of the other single countries on the list. Another myth it dispels is that digital pollution only emanates from poorer economies – eminent world economic giants such as the USA and China, as well as the leading EU members Germany, UK and France are all featured in the list. "

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