Code Red computer worms costly

The worldwide cost of the Code Red computer worms that were unleashed on the internet in July and last month has reached about $US2.6 billion ($5.94 billion), says an independent research firm.

The total cost of virus attacks on information systems around the world has reached an estimated $US10.7 billion so far this year, according to Computer Economics. That compares with $US17.1 billion last year and $US12.1 billion in 1999.