"The tests conducted in our secure labs were against the most significant viruses and worms affecting real-world users, " said John Hawes, a technical consultant at Virus Bulletin.

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And worms, unlike, say, white mice, have few sentimental supporters in the outside world.

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Intestinal worms are estimated to affect up to two billion people around the world, mainly in poor areas.

BBC: Worms detected by converted iPhone microscope

The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is an open-access, online database created in 2007 with the participation of 146 institutions in 32 countries.

UNESCO: THEMES

When the World Wide Web became widely available that same decade, viruses, worms and malware became problems in e-mail accounts, frustrating users who clicked on messages thought to be legitimate.

CNN: Facebook, Twitter crooks just a click away