Viruses and Spyware: Expected Costs

In Consumer Reports’ 2008 State of the Net summary, the odds of contracting a serious (computer) virus problems are given to be 1 in 7, the yearly costs $2.9 billion. The odds of a serious spyware problem are 1 in 14, with a yearly cost of $3.6 billion. (Note that these figures are for both businesses and consumers.)