2) The number of rootkits on 32-bit platforms will increase, but protection and remediation capabilities will increase too. Telafici said that rootkits are becoming a de facto standard in malicious programs and that they will increase over the next couple of years.

3) Vulnerabilities will continue to cause concern, fuelled by the underground market for them. McAfee Avert Labs thinks the number of vulnerabilities will grow because of the increased use of fuzzers ' automated tools and technologies that allow for large-scale testing of applications ' and 'bounty programs' that reward researchers for finding vulnerabilities. McAfee is not involved in any such initiatives, said Telafici.

This year, Microsoft Corp. has already announced 140 vulnerabilities, compared with 62 in 2004 and 2005 combined, said McAfee. Also, zero-day attacks are being released soon after 'Patch Tuesday' to get the most out of the vulnerability's window of opportunity, said the company.

4) Identity theft and data loss will continue to be issues 'computer theft, loss of backups and compromised information systems are at the result of these crimes. According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, ten million Americans are victims of identity fraud each year, said Telafici.

5) The number of password-stealing websites will increase, using fake sign-in pages for popular online services such as eBay.