We came across some great news today on darkREADING.com: Sunbelt Software, makers of VIPRE, our top-rated best antivirus program for 2009, is joining Trend Micro and others in contributing data to StopBadware.org.

StopBadware, which has its home at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society, is described in the article on darkREADING's efforts to fight malware as a,

"collaborative initiative to combat viruses, spyware, and other bad software...."

The process StopBadware uses is perhaps the largest of its kind. The idea behind it is simple:

"...[collect] the URLs of these badware websites, whether malicious or compromised, from its data partners.

"It uses the information to support and encourage site owners and web hosting companies in cleaning up and protecting their sites.

"The initiative also conducts analysis of infection trends, offers independent reviews of its partners' findings, and operates a community website, BadwareBusters.org, that provides help to people who have been victims-or wish to avoid becoming victims-of badware."

Obviously, we're happy to see any collaborative effort to thwart and stop any viruses or other malware, but this one garners special attention for several reasons, including who's involved:

Trend Micro (maker's of Trend Micro AntiVirus) Sunbelt Software (makers's of VIPRE antivirus) Harvard's Berkman Center Paypal Mozilla (maker's of Firefox and Thunderbird) AOL ...and last and not least: Google

As for Sunbelt's role in the project, they will be contributing,

"...research data via ThreatTrackT, a comprehensive array of malicious url and malware data feeds.

"The data in these feeds is derived from multiple sources including: research from Sunbelt Labs; ThreatNetT, Sunbelt's VIPRE user community that anonymously sends information on potential threats to Sunbelt Labs"

What this means to users like you and me is that by sending malware and viruses that your Trend Micro AntiVirus and Sunbelt VIPRE catch to the respective companies, you're helping the project to ensure someone else doesn't get nailed with that same--or a similar--virus.

In turn this means that when many people across the globe are sending in their samples to the project, too, they're helping you.