The Maltese tend to reap what they sow – and that is not much – when it comes to protecting their computers against viruses, and it is rarely a case of once bitten, twice shy when they have been infected, according to IT experts.
They are not surprised by the apparent discrepancy in the results of a Eurostat report, which shows that while 91 per cent of internet users in Malta install security software, as opposed to 84 per cent in the EU, half experienced a virus last year, positioning them in second place, following Bulgaria at 58 per cent.
Though computer infections are common, the EU’s average is much lower than Malta’s, standing at 31 per cent of internet users, according to the ICT survey, published ahead of Safer Internet Day last week.
The results of the study indicate that internet use in Malta can be a source of frequent abuse, even though many seem to be implementing adequate measures. Or are they?
Local IT experts point a finger at stinginess and maintain that most users cannot be bothered to keep a system clean.
Clamtech director Keith Tabone expected the contradiction that arises from the survey from his own client experience – both home users and businesses.
“We support about 60 clients and we deal with virus alerts up to four times a week,” he said.
Many clients are “misers” when it comes to installing anti-viruses, going for the cheap and free versions, which are normally not as good, even though the average price would be about €30 a year per PC.
The relatively high incidence of viruses is also due to the fact that the Maltese “download loads of piracy” and virus infections are associated with pirate movies, games and software.
“We are kings at stealing software,” Mr Tabone maintained.
And it is rarely a case of once bitten, twice shy, he believes. “If they have a virus, it does not necessarily mean they would go and buy an anti-virus the next day,” he said.
“Most of the time, they ask us to stop it entering but do not go for a commercial anti-virus. They only do so in cases of loss of data, whereby they would not just have been bitten; they would have been dealt a hard blow.”
Among the common problems encountered was a lack of education on both internet use and anti-viruses, explained Karl Saliba, Allied Newspapers Ltd head of IT.
“You can have one million anti-virus programmes but if a pop-up pops up on your screen, and instead of closing it, you click on it and follow the links without reading, you are asking for trouble.”
Mr Saliba also pointed to common misinformation on the concept of the anti-virus: “When you buy a PC, the guy tells you he has installed a free version and you think you have total protection, without knowing how to update and scan for viruses.” Another issue was the use of the wrong type of protection, Mr Saliba explained, differentiating between an anti-virus, which works locally on the processes of a PC that contain malicious software, and internet security, which also scans links and websites at source.
“If you just have the free version of an anti-virus programme, it is likely not to have any preventive measures,” he pointed out. The difference between free and licensed anti-viruses is the frequency of the updates, which in the case of the former, are carried out only once a day. Speaking of updating care, Mr Saliba stressed on its importance in the case of any programme.
“It is like having a car – if you do not service it regularly, it will eventually break down,” he said of the importance of what is known as “hardening” of any anti-virus programme. It was normally automatic but many just stopped it, never scheduled it or ignored it, he said.
Impatience is another issue, and when a programme is scanning for a virus, users tend to cancel or postpone it because they feel it is slowing down the system.
Mr Saliba too is not surprised by the survey findings, maintaining that, in general, “we are not bothered as a nation. We do not take the initiative to see how things work, whether they should be updated and how to keep a system clean. We just take it for granted”.