AV-TEST: The number of malware decreases, but their complexity increases

According to the AV-TEST Security Report 2016/2017 published by the independent anti-virus testing outfit AV-TEST, the number of malware decreases, but …

According to the AV-TEST Security Report 2016/2017 published by the independent anti-virus testing outfit AV-TEST, the number of malware samples detected in 2016 decreased compared to 2015, but they have been more sophisticated.

The recent NotPetya and WannaCry ransomware-based massive attacks, IoT malware like Mirai and banking Trojans implement new sophisticated techniques to avoid detection and to rapidly spread.

AV-TEST spotted roughly 127.5 million malware samples in 2016, meanwhile, the number of samples discovered in 2015 was 144 million (+14%).

The research institute observed roughly 350,000 new malware samples each day, that correspond to four new samples per second.

Less than one percent of the total share of Windows malware is represented by Ransomware, but the damage caused by this threat is severe.

“Comprising not even 1% of the overall share of malware for Windows, the blackmail Trojans appear at first glance to be a marginal phenomenon. The fact that this type of assessment is incorrect can be explained via the mode of action and damage created by this class of Trojans. ” states AV-TEST.

“A level of distribution comparable to traditional viruses is not required to reap the greatest possible profit. Ransomware involves ‘high-tech malware’, which seeks its victims above all in a targeted business environment. For instance, emails infected with ransomware are sent out almost exclusively on weekdays.” 

According to the researchers, the number of ransomware attack peaked in the Q1 2017.

AV-TEST reported a significant increase in the number of Mac OS samples (+370%) compared to 2015. The majority of malware was Trojan, more than 4,000 new samples were already identified in Q1 2017.

“Compared to the previous year, the malware sector for macOS is experiencing 370% percent growth. However, it is also important to keep an eye on the overall number of malware programs: Whereas in 2015 there were still a moderate 819 different malware threats targeting macOS, Apple users in 2016 already had to protect their devices from 3033 malware samples.” states the report.

The report confirms the number of Android malware samples doubled in 2016 to over 4 million, in June AV-TEST identified nearly 650,000 new samples of malware.

Give a look at the AV-TEST Security Report 2016/2017 !

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Pierluigi Paganini

(Security Affairs – AV-TEST, malware)

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