Consumer Reports annual “State of the Net” assessment was released this week.

The good news is that the magazine’s research is showing that spyware is on the decline due to improved anti-spyware programs and enforcement efforts. However, the numbers are still very high, 1 in 8 Internet users in the US dealt with a spyware infestation last year. The consumer magazine estimates that $2.6 billion was spent on spyware problem and that nearly a million users had to replace their computers because of it.

The report gives an overview of the state of the Canadian online security policy including some strong statements from the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic’s David Fewer on the failure of the government to act against spam.

There is also a quick, but informative review of anti-stalking tips domestic violence victims with quotes from Cindy Southworth of the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

As expected from any Consumer Reports review of this topic there are also unbiased reviews of major anti-virus and anti-spyware products that will be useful to all computer users.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 9th, 2006 at 5:50 pm and is filed under Consumer Privacy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.