Amazon Web Services hosts most of the malware in the world, accounting for 16% of malware hosted, followed by GoDaddy (14%) and Google, as malware distributors exploit the cloud, according to a new report from security firm Solutionary.
The latest Security Engineering Research Team (SERT) Quarterly Threat Intelligence Report for Q4 2013 report added that the big cloud hosting platforms are being used to rapidly spread malware, due to ease of website creation and the speed of deployment.
The report also found that the use of big cloud hosting services and domains would allow malware distributors to prevent detection and geographic blacklisting, as they offer trustworthy URL spaces that will not upturn on the majority of blacklists.
Solutionary SERT director of research Rob Kraus said that the report will show how widespread the malware problem truly is and how close it hits to home.
"We aren’t just talking about foreign espionage campaigns, APTs and breaches; many of these malicious activities are taking place within U.S. borders," Kraus said.
"Malware and, more specifically, its distributors are utilising the technologies and services that make processes, application deployment and website creation easier.
"Now we have to maintain our focus not only on the most dangerous parts of the Web but also on the parts we expect to be more trustworthy."
The report also added that the US hosted majority of malware compared to other nations, with 44% of all malware hosted domestically, which is five times more than Germany which accounted for 9% of the overall detected malware.
