There has been a 508 percent increase in the number of new malicious Web links discovered in the first half of 2009, according to IBMs XForce 2009 MidYear Trend and Risk Report.

The report found an increase in the presence of malicious content on trusted sites, including search engines, blogs, bulletin boards, personal websites, online magazines and mainstream news sites.Kris LambXForce DirectorThe level of web exploits, especially in PDF files are at an all time high indicating the increased sophistication of attackers. PDF vulnerabilities seen in the first of 2009 surpassed all those detected in 2008.The trends highlighted by the report seem to indicate that the Internet has finally taken on the characteristics of the Wild West where no one is to be trusted, said XForce Director Kris Lamb.