On February 5, 2009 Yuri Hohlov, Chairman of the IIS Board of Directors, appeared in live broadcast of television and radio broadcasting company "Peterburg - The Fifth Channel" in "Segodnya" (Today) program devoted to war against spam.

An information reason for this became annual analytical report on development of computer threats in 2008 made by "Kaspersky Labs". According to report the main trends of the past year were further development of virus technologies, forming criminal virus "ecosystem" and expansion of internet-threats.

During the interview Yuri Hohlov responded to relevant questions following the course of the program. Here are several of them.

1)    Why, despite the fact that users delete spam without reading, is it still so widespread?

Spam covers more than 80% of traffic in e-mail. Quantity of letters sent daily within Runet comes to billion. That small quantity of letters, which particular users none the less read and click hyperlinks, creates lots of transitions and increases attendance of advertised by spam web-sites.  Even such a quantity of people is enough to attract advertisers to this kind of activity, especially unprincipled ones. Distribution of spam remains profitable business, that’s why it is strongly sought-for despite running prohibitions.

2)    Is there any way of resisting spread of spam? How to struggle against it?

This problem is not only national but global. We need range of measures, including technological, organizational and legislative. Besides legislation at particular country’s level, which would declare spam as illegal activity, we need to apply coordinated efforts at international level in order to bring abusers to responsibility. Often objectives of spam distributors from one country are citizens of another country, and instruments of this computer crime may be situated in third countries.  Imperfection of international legislation and lack of coordinated activities significantly decrease efficiency of actions aimed at suppression of spam expansion.

3)    Is it true that in 2009 quantity of spam will increase?

I’m not sure. Most probably the quantity of spam may decrease first of all because of the global economic crisis, in connection with it amount of money directed for advertising through internet has already declined and will decline yet more. So less spam will be ordered for distribution.

Let’s remind that television and radio broadcasting company "Peterburg - The Fifth Channel" is the federal national TV-channel and broadcasts for the territory of more than half of RF subjects, more than 100 million people audience. Since September 3, 2007 channel broadcasts in Moscow.