SUNNYVALE, Calif., July 30 /PRNewswire/ --
McAfee.com (Nasdaq: MCAF), a leading provider of Web security services, today released statistics garnered from their real-time virus tracking map to quantify the widespread infection of the recent SirCam worm. Collecting data from scans of their over 1 million subscriber base and the over 800,000 unique users who had visited the site to check their PCs, McAfee.com has seen a steady rise of infection of this worm. Since the worm's first detection more than 10 days ago, the company has provided PC users worldwide with the removal instructions for the worm as well as protection for unaffected computers.According to the company's real-time virus tracking map, SirCam has steadily continued to infect PC users worldwide. In the past 7 days, McAfee.com reports SirCam has infected 12% of PCs scanned from North America, 18% from South America, 11% from Europe, and nearly 19% from Asia. In North America, SirCam has even surpassed the ILOVEYOU virus, which has been continually infecting computers since its first outbreak last May, causing an estimated $10 billion in damage in its wake.
The SirCam worm is capable of disguising itself by randomly selecting subject lines and attachment names. It carries a payload that allows it to send arbitrary files to all email recipients in the infected computer's address book. On July 23, this worm virus was deemed "high-risk" by AVERT, McAfee's Anti-Virus Emergency Response Team. McAfee.com has posted a warning on its Web site and alerted its more than 1.2 million worldwide subscribers as well as the public. McAfee.com anti-virus experts recommend that all users update their virus protection and use extreme caution with all email attachments.
"This virus is unique in that we have continued to see a high number of reports this long after its initial detection," said April Goostree, virus research manager, McAfee.com. "Usually we witness a drop a few days after we first detect a virus. But, in this case due to SirCam's random and subtle nature it has been successful in prompting people to click on the infected attachment. This only stresses the importance for PC users to have good and updated virus protection as well as to be very cautious in opening e-mail attachments."
For more information and removal instructions for the SirCam worm, visit the company's virus information library at ( http://vil.mcafee.com/).
About McAfee.com
Headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, McAfee.com Corporation, a majority-owned subsidiary of Network Associates (Nasdaq: NETA), is a leading provider of Web security services, redefining how software is developed, delivered and experienced by PC users at home and at work. The company delivers software benefits through an Internet browser, virtually eliminating the need to install, configure and manage the technology on a local PC or network. McAfee.com hosts software application services on its vast technology infrastructure and provides these services to users online through its Web site www.mcafee.com. McAfee.com has signed up more than 1,000,000 paid subscribers and regularly has more than 800,000 visitors each day. The company estimates that 30% of its subscriber base is international. For more information, contact McAfee.com at +1-408-992-8100 or visit http://www.mcafee.com/.
NOTE: Network Associates and McAfee are registered trademarks of Network Associates, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other registered and unregistered trademarks in this document are the sole property of their respective owners
SOURCE: McAfee.com
WEB SITEs: http://vil.mcafee.com/
CO: McAfee.com; Network Associates
ST: California
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