As many as 58.2 million American adults had at least one malware infection that affected their home PCs features or performance in the past year - a fact that collectively cost nearly $4 billion for repairs.
The latest Consumer reports found that a lack of basic security features are to blame. Despite of rapid development of computer technologies and global IT aware the number of infected machines remains the same from year to year.
Most new computers typically come preloaded with an anti-malware program, and often in a trial version. But when that trial runs out, users are left with the choice of either buying that software or making do without it. Too many consumers take the latter tack, even though Consumer Reports points out that some free products can be sufficient for run-of-the-mill users.
very good protection from online threats and should adequately protect all but the most at-risk Internet users, the advocate organization said. Computer users who remotely access their files when theyre away from home will need stronger protection and should consider a pay software, preferably.
The survey also asked people whose computers had been infected by malware how they verified such problems: 62% relied on anti-virus software to notify them; 17% felt they were savvy enough to verify it themselves; 15% relied on someone else with computer expertise; and 5% used a retailers in-house tech support service.
The report also examined other cyberthreats to the consumer landscape, and found that 9.2 million Americans were victims of phishing schemes in the past year, tricked into submitting personal data to criminal websites that appear to be well-known companies sites. Going hand-in-hand, heavy spam afflicted 43% of those surveyed by Consumer Reports. Among the big-name companies whose names successful phishers used most often are Bank of America, Chase, Facebook, PayPal and Visa.