From: Security Watch

By Fahmida Y. Rashid

Microsoft SIR

Countries with the lowest malware infection rates generally had more personal computers, spent more on healthcare, had greater regime stability, and higher broadband penetration, Microsoft found in a new report.

In contrast, countries with high malware infection rates typically had low broadband speeds, lagged in broadband penetration, and high crime per capita, Microsoft found in the special edition of the Security Intelligence Report, released Feb. 6. Countries with cyber-security regulations and policies fared better security-wise than countries who have yet to implement robust programs, suggesting that treaties and codes of conduct helped countries be more prepared and better informed about the latest threats.

The Special Edition Microsoft Security Intelligence Report: Linking Cybersecurity Policy and Performance attempts to “identify patterns or policies” to help distinguish countries with different cybersecurity levels, Kevin Sullivan, principal security strategist at Microsoft Trustworthy Computing and author of the report, wrote in a post explaining the report methodology.

Customers and governments frequently ask, “What factors contribute to the differences in regional malware infection rates?” Tim Rains, director of Trustworthy Computing, wrote on the Microsoft Security Blog.

In the report, Trustworthy Computing’s Global Security Strategy and Diplomacy team examined 34 socio-economic factors such as gross income, computers per capita, literacy rates, mobile penetration, political and economic stability within the region, and Facebook usage, among others, and compared them against malware infection rates for 105 countries.

Best vs Poor Performers
The best performing countries had an infection rate of 5 infected machines per 1,000 systems scanned, much lower than the worldwide average of 8.9 infected machines per 1,000 systems, according to the SIR. Of the countries with lower infection rates, 43 percent were located in Western Europe, 29 percent in Central and Eastern Europe, and 17 percent in Asia Pacific.

Read Complete Article