Spam continues to increase, Symantec says
But the overall file size for spam is decreasing, according to the security vendor's latest report.
Robert Vamosi Former Editor
As CNET's former resident security expert, Robert Vamosi has been interviewed on the BBC, CNN, MSNBC, and other outlets to share his knowledge about the latest online threats and to offer advice on personal and corporate security.
Spam now accounts for 78.5 percent of all e-mail traffic, according to a new report from Symantec. That's up from previous months. And Europe, not the United States, can now claim to be the source of most spam.
Other notable points culled from the "State of Spam" report for February 2008 (PDF) include:
- There was an appreciable decline of image spam during January 2008.
- The overall file size of spam messages has also decreased.
- Product spam, the largest category, makes up 28 percent of all spam.
- Internet Web hosting and Web design spam makes up 23 percent.
- Financial spam is in third place at 12 percent.
- However, health-related spam (those Viagra e-mails) only make up a mere 6 percent.