Sophos' Graham Cluley: The end of the widespread virus era is at hand

Oxford (UK) - The warning that came yesterday from Sophos Labs - which has vaulted to a position among the world's most respected security software providers - did not echo the story of the likelihood of 500,000 Windows computers infected by the Nyxem worm, repeated yesterday by local TV news and some technology press sources.

Instead, the company's senior technology consultant, Graham Cluley, warned of something else entirely: the possibility that panic could end up causing more damage than the virus itself would have. So he advised, take it easy. "Sit down, have a cup of tea, and work out if you have done everything you should have done to ensure your computer isn't at risk from the Nyxem worm, and indeed any of the other 120,000 pieces of malware in existence," Cluley wrote.

It turned out to be sound advice, as we learned this morning from Cluley himself, whom TG Daily contacted in the wake of the first news that computers in Asia and Europe were reporting minimal damage from the virus trumpeted to strike on 3 February. We spoke at length with Cluley about whether the press over-hyped the possible danger of the Nyxem worm, and what its low impact may mean for the evolution of malware. Here now is the transcript of TG Daily's interview with Sophos' Graham Cluley: