A recent report by the Norton division of Symantec estimated the cost of cybercrime at $388 billion per year. Included in that figure are the total dollars stolen and the costs of the time spent resolving the attacks ($114 billion). The total also accounts for the costs of the productive time lost by victims as a result of the cybercrimes committed against them ($274 billion).
The report reveals that more than 1 million people per day became victims of cybercrime over the past year. Viruses and malware were the most common type of cybercrime, with 54 percent of adults having had their computers infected.
These enormous costs and figures are yet another testimony to the importance of having updated security suites and high level protection. Organizations can’t afford to lose the time and resources associated with recovering from malware attacks, so many have turned to multi-scanning solutions to increase malware detection rates. By utilizing a solution with multiple anti-malware engines, organizations increase their likelihood of being protected from any individual threat. Some multi-scanning solutions, like OPSWAT’s Metascan, also include the ability to schedule regular signature updates to ensure that the latest virus definitions are in effect. Increasing detection rates and updating engines frequently will significantly help to reduce the number of cybercrime victims and costs.
Read more about Norton’s report in this article by InfoWorld.
