Zombies and botnets: OECD warns of hidden armies in cyber wars

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2008

PARIS (AFP) — The simple act of using a computer for email or the Internet can mobilise armies of hidden agents and criminals out to subvert the system and business, the OECD says in a study on cyber crime.

The report, entitled "Malicious software (malware): a security threat to the Internet economy," gives an impression of two worlds engaged in an uneven war of virus invasion and belated defence.

Cyber crime, to steal data, spy and attack government and business computer systems "is a potentially serious threat to the Internet economy," the study, published on Friday, warns.

Organisations involved in "fighting malware offer essentially a fragmented local response to a global threat," the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development says.

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