Australia and New Zealand – 9 February 2010 – BitDefender^®, an award-winning provider of innovative anti-malware security solutions, today cautioned online daters about the increased security risks associated with looking for love online this year and their unique susceptibility to identity theft and online scams.

While there are many respectable and reliable e-dating services, online daters should be extremely careful when choosing the best service to meet their needs. Before subscribing, users should always search for positive testimonials and Website reviews, as well as the advice of a trustworthy person who has already used the service. BitDefender also advises against subscribing to a dating service discovered via spam e-mails, which could result in identity theft or becoming the recipient of additional spam.

“Finding the perfect match on Valentine’s Day via an online dating service sounds like a dream come true, but it can quickly turn into a nightmare,” said Catalin Cosoi, BitDefender’s senior antispam researcher. “To avoid falling victim to cybercrimes, online daters should only use sites with explicit privacy policies, ensuring that their anonymity will be protected and no private information will be revealed without their consent.”

Starting out with an online dating service, users should always provide as little detail as possible and employ nicknames or aliases in lieu of real names. If possible, they should create and use an alternative email account, ensuring the security of their personal account and work information. Users should never reveal sensitive private data such as a home or work addresses, phone numbers or Social Security numbers.

“Even the most trivial information — like your mother’s maiden name or first pet’s name — can be exploited by cybercriminals. Many of these details may seem unimportant, but they can serve as password recovery hints for email addresses or online banking accounts. Moreover, online daters must be careful never to share financial data, such as bank accounts, credit card numbers or PINs” added Cosoi.

Additional e-threats this Valentine’s Day may also include:

• Spam distributed via social networks, which direct to malicious websites that spread Trojans, rogue antivirus, key loggers and other types of malware
• Email spam exploiting Valentine’s Day to advertise goods and services
• Email attachments attempting to deliver different breeds of malware under the innocent cover of a short, funny movie (which requires a special codec to be played), slide show or e-card

BitDefender offers the following additional tips to keep computers and personal information safe:

• Don’t open e-mail from unknown sources. Many viruses spread via email messages, so always ask for a confirmation from the sender if you are in doubt.
• Don’t open attachments in emails with suspicious subject lines right away. Instead, save them to your hard disk and scan them with an updated antivirus program.
• Delete any chain emails or unwanted messages. Don’t forward them or reply to their senders. These kinds of messages are considered spam because they’re unsolicited and can overload Web traffic.
• Update your system and applications as often as possible. Some operating systems and applications can be set to update automatically. Make full use of this feature. Failure to patch your system often may leave it vulnerable to threats.
• Don’t copy any file from a source you don’t know or trust. Check the source of files you download and make sure that an antimalware program has already verified the files at their source.
• Use an integrated security solution that includes antimalware, antispam and firewall, as well as advanced features, such as Web Filtering and Identity Protection.

About BitDefender®
BitDefender is the creator of one of the industry’s fastest and most effective lines of internationally certified security software. Since its inception in 2001, BitDefender has continued to raise the bar and set new standards in proactive threat prevention, emerging as the industry’s anti-malware innovator. Every day, BitDefender protects tens of millions of home and corporate users across the globe — giving them the peace of mind of knowing that their digital experiences will be secure. BitDefender solutions are distributed by a global network of value-added distribution and reseller partners in more than 100 countries worldwide. More information about BitDefender and its products are available at the company’s security solutions press room. Additionally, BitDefender’s www.malwarecity.com provides background and the latest updates on security threats helping users stay informed in the everyday battle against malware.