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RSS Feed'Greynets to increase over 2008'
Instant messaging applications are increasingly being targeted by hackers, it has been claimed.
According to a study from analysts at FaceTime.com, the number of greynets - the applications used by cybercriminals in attacks on instant messengers - are set to increase from the current figure of 600 to over 1,000 over the course of this year.
The greynets "sport a number of network and information security risks including potential vectors for malware, client-side code vulnerabilities, intellectual property loss, identity theft and more".
Facetime's study also revealed that surfers using AOL Instant Messenger have been most vulnerable to such attacks in the last year, with 45 per cent of those noted taking place on the telecommunications giant's application, ibls.com reports.
Meanwhile, the MSN Network accounted for 19 per cent and 20 per cent were on Yahoo's instant messaging network.
The remainder of the attacks occurred on other IM networks.
Analysts perceive that the vulnerability of users of IM services is exacerbated since the spontaneous, fun nature of using instant messaging seems to put people in a frame of mind where they are less vigilant over internet security.
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