Virus Statistics

Anti-virus software and computer security companies tend to amp up fear about the possibility of your computer being infected with a virus or malware. While scare tactics help sell software, are there really that many viruses out there lurking around every corner of the web? According to statistics, the answer is yes, but you probably shouldn't be too worried. As long as you're careful, you can avoid and deter threats, no matter the number.

The History of Virus Statistics

Back before the wide-spread use of the internet, viruses were virtually unheard of. Viruses are created to spread from one computer to another. Before the internet was widely used, viruses were limited to individual networks of computers, hardly a tempting target for someone wanting to create widespread damage.

The very first virus was created in the early 1970s. It was called the Creeper virus and affected computers on ARPANET, which is known as one of the first forms of today's internet. This virus wasn't malicious and was quickly eradicated with the first anti-virus program, the Reaper.

In 1981, the first hacker-made virus appeared. It was created by a kid in high school and spread through Apple floppy drives.

Yearly Statistics of Viruses

As the years passed, the threat of viruses grew and ebbed, according to statistics. In the 1990s, when the internet became widely used, around 20 major computer viruses were created. The list of notorious '90s viruses includes Shifter, OneHalf, SrcVir, the Chameleon and the Concept Virus.

In 2001 the numbers bloomed to around 34,000. In 2004 the number of viruses skyrocketed from 17,425 in the previous year to 52,151, according to statistics. Since 2006, the number of viruses has gradually been decreasing, according to a statistics report by the Information-Technology Promotion Agency. There were only approximately 14,000 viruses in 2010.

These numbers may seem low since many people confuse the term virus with other attacks that may affect your computer. As noted above, viruses are programs created to spread from one computer to another. Other forms of malware are not able to spread themselves and must be manually downloaded to move from one machine to the next. If you add up all types of malware and look at the statistics, the numbers are much higher.

Protecting Your Computer

Of course, you need to be wary of any type of malicious program that may damage your computer, no matter what the statistics say. Security software with virus and malware defense capabilities offer the best protection. Software that is kept current will block most threats as they are created and identified, no matter how many threats there are. Another easy way to avoid computer infection is to avoid using jump drives that haven't been checked for malware. Many security software packages include the ability to scan jump drives.

While the statistics show that viruses and other forms of malware are abundant, it is easy to keep your computer safe. With constantly improving technology, it will be harder and harder for hackers to create a virus that can outsmart security software, which will eventually lessen the numbers even more.