The half-yearly Microsoft Security Intelligence Report provides an analysis of data collected by Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool and other Microsoft security products. It provides trends in software vulnerability disclosures, E-Mail Threats, Spam and Phishing and malicious and potentially unwanted software.

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Some of the interesting trends noticed in Malicious and Potentially Unwanted Software are:

• In 1H08, the total amount of malware and potentially unwanted sofware removed from computers worldwide increased by more than 43 percent compared to 2H07.


• Although patterns of malware detected and removed by Microsoft security products varied across countries and regions, trojan downloaders and droppers constituted more than 30 percent of all malware removed by Microsoft security products world- wide. Tis trend builds on the significant increases in the volume of trojan downloaders and droppers detected over the past several years.


• As a general rule, infection rates tend to be higher in developing countries/regions than in developed countries/regions, as reported by the Malicious Sofware Removal Tool (MSRT).


• The infection rate for Windows Vista is significantly lower than that of its predecessor, Windows XP, at any service pack level.


• The infection rates for the 64-bit editions of Windows Vista were both lower than those of their 32-bit counterparts.


• For each version of the operating system, higher the service pack levels meant lower rates of infection. This trend can be observed consistently across client and server operating systems half-year period over half-year period.

More information Microsoft Malware Protection Center - Security Intelligence Report