An official warning was issued Friday that the site and its more than 100 million users could be subject to a large-scale virus attack. In some cases, experts believe the network has already been hacked and that the transmission of viruses from site to site has only just begun.
Leading computer virus firm Sophos issued a statement saying that already several viruses specific to the MySpace networking environment are active. Those viruses, Sophos says, can change settings, delete files and track users' movements online. Sophos also reports seeing pages that contain code designed to automatically spread viruses through MySpace's buddy system.
Sophos chief Graham Cluley attributes the likelihood of a major MySpace virus outbreak to the fact that surfers, many of whom are teenagers, let their guard down in a socially interactive setting.
"But even a picture of a fluffy bunny rabbit on the site can contain a hidden piece of software that could harm your machine," Cluley said.
Based on a July survey, ScanSafe, a web security firm, claims that 600 profile pages on MySpace are already host to some form of malware, such as spyware and adware. ScanSafe also says that the presence of spyware and adware increased by 19 percent last month.
MySpace is a favorite social networking site for adult entertainers and business professionals. Some analysts have said that MySpace accounts for one percent of all Internet use in the workplace and 4.5 percent of all Internet traffic.