We have received this letter from Yuval BenItzhak, CTO, Finjan:
I am pleased that the UK government has admitted that it may be forced to strengthen the anti-spam legislation introduced in 2003.
This legislation has been criticised by anti-spam campaigners and data protection watchdog because although the law bans the sending of spam to individuals, it does not stop spammers sending unsolicited junk emails to businesses.
UK organisations, as a whole have not considered the fact that spam files being sent could carry hidden malicious code they are more concerned about the latest viruses. Malicious code such as Spyware, embedded in the spam message or referenced by the spam, could be used to extract information and personal details from a businesses databases for criminal purposes.
Our recent Trend Reports for Q2/2006 indicates on the increased use of malicious code in spam messages to compromise businesses. Spam messages are no longer just annoying, they are malicious as well.
While it is a positive step that the Government have realised the shortfall in the current law, I hope that they will seek advice from the IT Security sector and work with it to enforce stricter and more detailed legislation to hit Spammers and cyber criminals.
[All direct mail, whether electronic or on dead trees, should be opt-in! --Ed].
Related links: (Open in a new window.)
www.finjan.com
Taken from Information Security Bulletin.