Fifty Volunteers around the World Say ‘Yes’ to a Diet of Spam for 30 Days
SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — McAfee, Inc. today announced the launch of its global S.P.A.M. (Spammed Persistently All Month) Experiment. For the month of April, participants from around the world — ranging from homemakers, government executives, and students to retirees — will surf the Web, make online purchases and register for promotions. Participants have been provided with a clean laptop without spam protection and a new email address. Beginning today, they will blog about their experiences daily at http://www.mcafee.com/spamexperiment.
With a proven link between spam and cybercrime, the experiment aims to show the devastating effects of spam.
“Spam isn’t just a nuisance. It’s a tool used by cyber criminals to steal personal and business data,” said Christopher Bolin, chief technology officer for McAfee. “And, as scammers become more adept at writing spam in local languages it’s becoming more difficult for Internet users to detect spam. It’s vital that computer users understand the risks of leaving their computers unprotected.”
Cybercriminals use spam to take control of millions of compromised computers around the world. Spam emails entice individuals at work and at home to handover sensitive information — and even cash — to criminals.
“Cybercrime won’t go away without solving the problem of spam,” said Dave DeWalt, chief executive officer for McAfee. “McAfee is leading the fight against cybercrime and spam. This experiment will raise awareness of the problem by showing that a 30-day diet of spam is bad for your online health.”
S.P.A.M. Experiment participants are from ten countries spanning the globe, including Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.
To track the daily progress of the S.P.A.M. Experiment and read reports from the participants, please visit http://www.mcafee.com/spamexperiment.
About McAfee, Inc.
McAfee, Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is the world’s largest dedicated security technology company. It delivers proactive and proven solutions and services that secure systems and networks around the world, allowing users to browse and shop the Web securely. With its unmatched security expertise and commitment to innovation, McAfee empowers home users, businesses, the public sector and service providers by enabling them to comply with regulations, protect data, prevent disruptions, identify vulnerabilities and continuously monitor and improve their security. http://www.mcafee.com.
McAfee is a registered trademark of McAfee, Inc., and/or its affiliates in the US and/or other countries. McAfee Red in connection with security is distinctive of McAfee brand products. Any other non-McAfee related products, registered and/or unregistered trademarks contained herein is only by reference and are the sole property of their respective owners. (C) 2008 McAfee, Inc. All rights reserved.
Source: http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/prnewswire/AQM08131032008-1.htm
