FOSTER CITY, CALIF. - July 2, 2007 - FaceTime
Communications, the leading provider of solutions for securing and
managing IM, P2P and Web-based greynets in the enterprise, reported
today that security incidents targeting public IM and P2P channels
have increased by 5 percent in Q2 2007 compared with Q1 2007. In
contrast, last year saw a 35 percent decline over the same period,
from Q1 to Q2 2006.
A total of 317 incidents were reported during Q2 2007, bringing
the total since Jan. 1, 2007, to 618 incidents. Ongoing research
reaffirms a cyclical nature to malware threats with peaks in each
year, typically in the spring and fall, followed by lulls in the
summer and winter. In 2007, security incidents declined somewhat
during the first quarter from a high in January. In the second
quarter, security threats climbed again, but appear to have peaked
in June. If previous patterns hold, FaceTime expects a decline in
the summer, followed by an upswing in the early fall.
From Q1 to Q2 2007, attacks spread via the mainstream networks
(Yahoo, MSN and AOL) dropped from 74 total incidents in the first
period to 64 in the second quarter. Attacks spread via AOL dropped
by more than half (from 28 incidents to 13). Overall, the MSN
network accounted for 50 percent of the attacks on the major
networks, followed by Yahoo at 30 percent and AOL with 20
percent.
Additional key findings in the report include:
- Increase in IRC attacks
As FaceTime predicted earlier this year, attacks spread via
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) continue to account for a growing
percentage of all attacks. In fact, the percentage of attacks that
are IRC-based has risen in each of the last six quarters, rising
from a 59 percent share in Q1 2006 to 72 percent in the current
quarter.
- Single channel attacks vs. multichannel
Similarly, single channel attacks-security incidents that
propagate via only one vector, such as AOL, Yahoo or IRC-now
account for almost three-fourths of all attacks. The percentage of
attacks that are single-channel has also risen in each of the last
six quarters, growing from a 46 percent share in the first quarter
of 2006 to 71 percent in Q2 of 2007.
"We are continuing to track new malware incidents and to study
the nature of the way these attacks spread and propagate," said
Frank Cabri, vice president of marketing and product management for
FaceTime Communications. "The quantitative data confirms the
continued risks of malware infection through real-time
communications channels. These real-time applications are present
on every major corporation's network whether or not the IT
department officially sanctions their use."
To find the most current and up-to-date threat information, or
to view a copy of the report, visit FaceTime Security Labs at: http://www.facetime.com/securitylabs/impactreport.aspx.
About Actiance, Inc. (Formerly FaceTime Communications, Inc.)
FaceTime Communications became Actiance, Inc on January 11, 2011 following an agreement to
transfer the FaceTime trademark to Apple.
FaceTime Communications enables the safe and productive use of Unified Communications and Web 2.0,
including instant messaging, blogs and social networking. Ranked number one by IDC for five consecutive
years, FaceTime's award-winning solutions are used by more than 1,500 customers for the security,
management and compliance of real-time communications. FaceTime supports or has strategic partnerships
with all leading IM, unified communications providers and social networks including AOL, Google, Yahoo!,
Skype, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
FaceTime is headquartered in Belmont, California. For more information visit
http://www.facetime.com or call 888-349-3223.
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