A new report shows that cyber criminals are getting more sophisticated in their attacks, focusing on creating targeted, malicious code to steal confidential information from Internet users for financial gain.

The latest Internet Security Threat Report from security experts Symantec revealed that instead of using mass-mailing worms, attackers are now increasingly moving toward using Trojans in their attacks.

The research also showed there were more than 6 million infected computers worldwide during the second half of 2006 which could be used as part of a network for malicious attacks.

Criminal organizations are making money selling stolen information on the Internet including credit cards, user accounts, and e-mail address lists.

According to the report 54% of all identity theft-related data breaches were due to loss or theft of a computer or a data storage medium such as a USB memory key.

The report also showed that the US has the highest proportion of malicious activity originating from its networks, with China second and Germany third.

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