More than 6,000 keylogging programs are expected to be released by hackers this year. This represents a 65 per cent increase from last year.
According to iDefense, in 2000, hackers released just 300 keyloggers. In 2001, the number dropped to 275. However the hacking technique started to gain in popularity between 2002 and 2003, when the number rose from 444 to 1230.
Keylogging has become popular with Internet hackers, providing a means for them to capture sensitive and potentially profitable information, such as passwords, credit card details and other information useful in the commission of identify theft and other crimes. IDefense estimates that keyloggers costs a company just under $4,000 in wasted time, when time taken to perform extra security precautions are taken into account.