Google opens up about the malware alerts it sends users

Google has expanded its "Transparency Report" to include statistics detailing the extent and source of malicious websites.

The tech giant launched its "Safe Browsing" program in 2006 to notify users about sites that it believed contained malware. Google said it flags up to 10,000 malicious sites each day, and now those numbers, as well as other data points, will be publicly available in graph form, according to software engineer Lucas Ballard.

"You can now learn how many people see 'Safe Browsing' warnings each week, where malicious sites are hosted around the world, how quickly websites become reinfected after their owners clean malware from their sites, and other tidbits we've surfaced," Ballard wrote in a blog post.

The report also includes a "Notable Events" page, which helps explain some of the ebbs and flows illustrated on the charts. For example, earlier this month, a malware campaign to exploit vulnerabilities in Java and Adobe software impacted some 7,500 sites, resulting in 75 million users receiving warnings.

Google unveiled its first Transparency Report in 2010 to chronicle the number of requests it receives from governments around the world for user information. It now also includes content removal requests.

This article originally appeared at scmagazineus.com