Security Alert: Spear Phishing Attacks On The Rise

Wired magazine's Kim Zetter comments on and analyzes a recent report from security software maker Symantec that says spear phishing is dramatically on the rise. Spear phishing is used to plant bots and other malware on victims' computers.

"The number of targeted phishing attacks against individuals has risen dramatically in the last five years from one or two a week in 2005 to more than 70 a day this month, according to a new report from computer security firm Symantec.

The industry most recently hardest hit by so-called spear-phishing attacks is the retail industry, according to Symantec’s MessageLabs Intelligence report. The number of attacks against retail exploded in September in particular, jumping to 516 attacks from just seven attacks a month for the rest of 2010."