As part of its Safe Browsing program, Google has decided to include something new in its most recent biannual Transparency Report. Up to now, the report has shown real-time Google traffic worldwide, along with copyright removal requests and user data requests from government agencies and courts. But beginning this week, Google announced that it will begin regularly releasing internet security data to warn users about malware and phishing scams that infect computers, as well as where they originate from and how they could steal your information so you can learn what to avoid.
From Google’s official blog:
…today we’re launching a new section on our Transparency Report that will shed more light on the sources of malware and phishing attacks. You can now learn how many people see Safe Browsing warnings each week, where malicious sites are hosted around the world, how quickly websites become reinfected after their owners clean malware from their sites, and other tidbits we’ve surfaced.
The data reveals that over 88 million Safe Browsing warnings are delivered to users each week, with Google currently flagging 10,000+ sites per day. And what’s most iinteresting is the world heat map, showing which countries host the highest number of sites infected with malware. Any guesses on top countries? Nope, not Nigeria, despite the emails you get requesting quick money transfers and a valid social security number. An area with one of the highest concentrations of malware/phishing scams is actually Europe.
Check out Google’s full Transparency Report here.