The UK is the top ranked country for information stealing
Trojans, according to the latest internet threat report for the
EMEA region from security firm
Symantec.
The UK also leads the league tables for back doors or malicious
code that can give a hacker control of a compromised computer.
Trojans and
back doors are increasingly favoured by hackers because of the
value of confidential information in the underground economy.
Credit card information is also targeted through phishing
attacks that typically trick victims into disclosing details using
social engineering methods and fake websites.
Cyber-criminals can sell bank account credentials for up to £600
in the underground economy and credit card numbers with security
codes for up to £20, the report said.
Key logging malware is the third most prevalent threat to
confidential information of the top 50 malicious code
infections.
Cyber-criminals can process the keystroke data to extract user
account credentials such as those for online banking websites.
Anyone using the internet for financial transactions of any kind
should review bank and credit card information frequently to
identify irregular activity, the report said.
Corporate network administrators can also review web proxy logs
to find out if users have visited any known phishing sites.