12 million Brits suffer virus attack

Nearly 12 million computer users in the UK have suffered a computer hack or been infected by a virus or spyware in the last six months, according to a study.

Despite 95 per cent of people claiming to use anti-virus or firewall software, around 40 per cent of respondents said the breach caused major disruption to their system.

One in 10 described the attack as deadly, rendering their computer unusable, figures from price-comparison website Moneysupermarket.com revealed.

As to where the attacks emanated from, 9 per cent believed the compromise was a result of visiting an "adult" website. A fifth of people said the attacks came from browsing the web, while 12 per cent put the breach down to opening unknown files.

James Parker, manager of broadband at Moneysupermarket.com, said people need to be more aware of security threats than ever before.

Parker advised regularly updating anti-virus software as a means to prevent security compromises as well as keeping firewalls turned on.

He also advised against opening email attachments from unknown senders and downloading applications from Facebook as they could contain malware.

For advice on protecting your computer, read our online security guides