Risk: Informational
Various security firms have reported that there were five times as many different malicious programs in circulation in 2007 compared with 2006.
Most of the malicious programs detected are aimed at the various versions of Microsoft's Windows operating system. However, it is thought that the majority of these unique programs will consist of older viruses that have been scrambled to look new.
With hackers now able to bypass many anti-virus programs, organisations should look at adopting new techniques to combat the rise in malware variants.