According to McAfee, Spam is expected to increase by 20 percent in March (this month) and may cost companies about $41,000.
We all hate to hear news like this but we all must face the music because it is a very real threat, spam is on a continuous rise.
Spam messages date back to the beginning of the internet and email where spammers have been diligently working to send these malicious messages in seek of monetary gain by spreading malware or malicious website links. With the current state of the economy this is big news because it will cost companies, who already spend thousands on filtering spam messages, an additional amount to combat these messages.
Companies who have 1,000 or more employees may expect and average spending of $182,500 in spam-combat costs this year according to McAfee's March Spam report. Spammers are finding ways to slip through current spam filters where if only an additional 4% of the spam messages slip through the cracks it can be in the thousands of dollars extra companies will have to spend to update the filters.
Many companies just cannot afford to dish out the extra amounts needed to protect themselves from spam messages. "It's more important than ever that companies protect themselves from the threats of spam," says Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs.
Sometimes it is just those pesky marketing spam messages that popup up in inboxes instead of the ones that carry viruses or malware that increase the costs that corporations have to increase for better spam monitoring or filtering. Other rising spam messages this month include those of fake e-tickets which are mostly compromised of fake airline ticket confirmations. These messages usually do include a malicious file contained within a zip attachment. Others may lead users to phishing sites that steal personal information. Either way, spam is a serious epidemic and we must all guard ourselves accordingly.
If the extra money is not spent to protect employee's inboxes then it may be up to individuals to be cautious of each email message that they may open. It may be best to delete messages that draw the least bit of suspicion or if you are not sure of the sender.
Have you noticed an increase in the number of spam messages lately? Is your spam filter catching all of your spam messages?