2004 Forecast, Alas, Calls For More Worms, Viruses And Spam; Security's Importance Grows; Companies attack problem that nevertheless became even more severe in 2003.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)

Byline: DONNA HOWELL

Remember 2003? It was the year of the obnoxious visitor.

Five big online attacks hit computer users. So did tons of spam, or junk e-mail, which grew to the status of security threat.

Still muddling through the economic downturn, businesses spent more to stay safe in 2003. Seeking simplicity, many bought plug-in security appliances. Others outsourced to managed security services firms.

What's in store for 2004? The forecast calls for spam, spam and spam -- as well as faster, more sophisticated and more persistent online attacks.

"Life isn't the same as it was a year or two ago," said Vincent Weafer, senior director of security response at security firm Symantec Corp. in Cupertino, Calif. "We're definitely seeing an evolution of the threat scales out there."

2003 beat prior years in both the number and severity of virus outbreaks, notes Finnish security firm F-Secure Corp.