Computer Experts: The Bad Guys Are Winning

Security researchers outflanked by well-funded cybercriminals

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 6, 2008 11:57 AM CST

(Newser) – There's a war on for your computer and the bad guys are winning, the New York Times reports. Malware that stealthily hijacks a computer to send more malware is spreading like wildfire, and efforts to battle the constantly evolving threat often amount to little more than a game of online whack-a-mole. Cybercriminals are now as advanced as the top software companies—and faster and more adaptable, security experts say.

The fight is being lost, experts say, largely because resources have been poured into patching up the existing, deeply flawed system instead of creating a safer one. Cybercriminals rake in $100 billion through credit card thefts, bank frauds, and other scams, and Internet execs fear the scale of the thievery is rapidly eroding trust in the Internet as a vehicle for commerce.

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Computer security experts warn that wel-funded and organized cybercriminals have got the upper hand. (Shutter Stock)

Georgia Tech researchers say that the percentage of computers worldwide infected with malware is set to rise to 15% by the end of this year. (Flickr)

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In many respects, we are probably worse off than we were 20 years ago because all of the money has been devoted to patching the current problem rather than investing in the redesign of our infrastructure. - Computer scientist Eugene Spafford

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Computer Experts: The Bad Guys Are Winning