Online Music a Bigger Threat to Security than Online Porn

More unwanted code (spyware, viruses, etc.) come with downloads for online music than for online porn.  This result is found in a study conducted by McAffee.  One would think that that it would be the other way around.  Apparently file sharing sites are more likely to include compromised code as a way of making money.  The porn industry on the other hand is established enough that it doesn't need the profits from extraneous software.

The study also surveyed sponsored and unsponsored search results as sources of malware.  Sponsored search results from various search engines were better than unpaid results at being malevolent, with Ask.com being the worst at 3.3% of offerings that were compromised. 

Speaking of file sharing and the porn industry, the Internet is causing a decline in profits for porn producers.  The estimated take in 2006 was $3.62 billion, down from $4.28 billion in 2005.  The problem for the industry is that anyone with a video camera and some technical know-how can set up shop.  There is a segment of the audience that doesn't care as much about quality as they do about content.  And there is, of course, file sharing.

See stories in the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, PC World, and CNET.