Trojans on the increase

Trojan horses are increasing at an alarming rate while email viruses and worms continue to decline, security experts reveal.

According to web security company Sophos, 86 per cent of the threats reported last month were Trojan horses, which hackers use to install malicious code, spy on users, steal information or gain unauthorised access to computers.

Security experts are warning computer users that internet attacks are now more likely to be financially orientated and that web users should not give out personal details online.

Last month, 28 per cent of the threats spreading on the net let unauthorised third parties access computers remotely, Sophos revealed.

Carole Theriault, senior security consultant at Sophos, said: "Mass-mailing worms may be in decline, but it's highly unlikely that they will disappear entirely - the introduction of a major new operating system may even spark a new wave of threats, as virus writers try to find holes in the product."

According to Sophos, one in 141 emails is viral. Long established threats continue to dominate the top ten including the pesky Netsky, which according Sophos, proves that computer users are still failing to update their security patches.