Avira survey: Ten percent of Internet users still surf unprotected

Despite over 750,000 newly discovered viruses every month, 19 percent of users still underestimate the risks of unprotected surfing.

Tettnang, 8 July 2008 - Online deception, identity theft, dialer rip-off or contaminated websites: the majority of the Internet community remain unsettled about cyber crime. Nevertheless 10 percent of Internet users do not use any virus protection and just as many only rely on risky On Demand scanners. This result is the conclusion of the latest survey conducted by sescurity experts Avira who posed the "moral issue - question of the month" to 5671 visitors to the website www.free-av.com. "Online virus scanners are anti-virus programs that load a program and virus sample over a network. Unlike locally installed virus scanners, they only work on request. How do you like your virus scanner: On-demand, On-access or Online?"

The majority of Internet users use real-time control, this means On Access virus protection: according to the 62 percent of Internet users questioned have installed anti-virus software in operation which carries out tests on files for viruses when they are accessed, instantly detecting and removing viruses and malware. Nine percent of survey participants exclusively use online scanners because these do not have any negative effects on the working performance of the PC. However, testing for viruses only takes place when actioned by the user. Rainer Witzgall, Executive Vice President of Avira, says: "The dangers for users with online scanners is that between the scans viruses are able to sneak in and secondly an extremely high risk occurs as the computer needs to be connected to the Internet to scan. Greater protection is offered by installed On Access virus protection".

Almost one fifth of the people questioned occasionally resort to an online scanner in order to obtain, in parallel to their installed virus protection, a second opinion. Witzgall adds: "As opposed to On Access programs which are continually operational as virus monitors, On Demand scanners offer no preventive protection against malware. They are suitable for cleaning contaminated computers but are insufficient as a measure of protection". It seems that one out of ten PC users is not concerned about the protection of his or her computer in the World-Wide Web and uses neither On Access nor On Demand virus protection. Witzgall further says: "More and more people are going online as more senior people and PC newcomers discover the advantages of the Internet. We continue to raise the awareness and concerns about the dangers of viruses and malware: according to a study conducted by the BSI in 2005, twenty percent of Internet users surfed without virus protection, it is now, according to our latest survey, only ten percent. This is a very pleasing step in the right direction".

Avira has a free, resource-friendly On Access virus protection solution available for downloading at www.free-av.com. Those who want additional protection with extra features can receive, for 19.95 Euro per year, the Avira AntiVir Premium. The Premium software offers, in addition to the successful base protection, the WebGuard module, which examines the http-based Internet traffic for contamination and automatically blocks phishing and malware URLs, as well as protection against adware and spyware.