The Canadian situation: in our first exclusive report for Canadian subscribers, we explore the state of the net in Canada to see how online threats compare with those in the U.S.(ONLINE SECURITY)

Canadians like to think they're safe from some of the worst crimes committed in the United States, but living north of the 49th parallel is no guarantee you'll escape the realities of Internet viruses and schemes. The Internet doesn't recognize or respect international borders, so why would Canada be spared the viruses, spyware, spam, and phishing schemes that plague the U.S.?

In many ways, "the threat is similar in Canada and the U.S.," says Jack Sebbag, Canadian general manager and vice president of the Internet security software firm McAfee Canada. "Most e-mail addresses are harvested when people sign up [on Web sites] or download software."

ELECTRONIC JUNK MAIL ABOUNDS

The terms "spam" and "virus" have become familiar to most Canadians because those problems have become so commonplace. Everyone with an e-mail address has received mail he or she didn't expect or simply didn't want. In fact, the vast majority of email traffic today is spam. It accounts for 71 percent of the 171 billion messages sent daily, according to a study published this year by the Radicati Group, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based consulting firm that covers online security issues.

Much of that spam carries a virus that can wreak havoc on your computer. Some spam contains spyware designed to track your Web surfing habits or, even worse, capture your personal data.

Over the past few years Internet-based threats have become more sophisticated. Phishing, for example, is the practice of sending out phony e-mail messages to solicit personal data from unsuspecting consumers. The messages appear to come from trusted financial institutions or popular Web sites such as eBay, but don't.

"You think you're communicating with your bank, but that information goes to some bad guys who in essence rob from your accounts or credit cards," says Sebbag.