Malware writers are flooding the market with rogue anti-spyware applications in an attempt to steer consumers away from genuine security software and make money from selling bogus applications.

Download service Snapfiles told vnunet.com that the rogue applications outnumber genuine software by a factor of four to one.

Snapfiles hosts free and trial applications for consumers to download, and claims to reject any software that fails to deliver the promised functionality or causes harm to a system.

Download site Tucows confirmed the figure, saying that it too rejects about four-fifths of the anti-spyware programs it receives from developers.

Rogue anti-spyware programs present themselves as legitimate security solutions, but have no intention of ridding a user's system of malware.

Instead, the application scares the user with false test results, fails to get rid of existing spyware infections, and in some cases even infects the system with additional pieces of spyware and adware.

Users whose systems have been infected with spyware typically form an attractive target for distributors of rogue products.

Ben Edelman, an assistant professor at the Harvard Business School, and an established adware and spyware researcher, said that the spread of rogue anti-spyware is "a huge problem".

He argued that the problem is caused by networks of affiliate websites and advertising networks.

The affiliate sites are often constructed by rogue anti-spyware vendors to resemble objective review sites that fool users into thinking that they are downloading an independently verified product.

Advertising networks, meanwhile, help the criminals advertise their wares. By accepting ads from the vendors, otherwise respectable companies are aiding the spread of rogue anti-spyware, Edelman charged.