The Middle East has been rife with conflict for thousands of years. However, recently released reports have suggested that there is one more major war underway in the Middle East: the war over the internet.

A massive cyberwar is underway between hackers and PC security experts. At stake? The safety and security of millions of PC users. The virus in question is called Flame, and it’s one of the most dangerous viruses in the world today. It’s ranked right behind the Stuxnet virus (which caused major problems for Iran’s nuclear program) and a virus called Duqu (and yes, Duqu was named after the infamous Star Wars villain).

Flame is said to contain 100 times as much code as a traditional data-stealing virus. This makes it difficult to detect and remove, giving computer security firms nightmares. In fact, the virus is becoming such a serious problem that the United Nations has called upon PC security firms to collaborate on solving the problem. The United Nations’ International Telecommunications Union was established to promote research and cooperation in communications technology.

It’s easy to see the Flame virus as being a Middle Eastern problem, but it’s more than just that. Flame exploits a hole that can be found in every Windows operating system and is spread through various security loopholes. While the attack is currently concentrated in the Middle East, various computers around North America have been infected. After all, viruses know no nationality, and it’s easy to spread malware problems to anybody over the internet.

The Flame virus highlights the importance of protecting your computer in today’s dangerous day and age. There are simply too many viruses on the internet, and if one does happen to infect your system, there is no shortage of damage that could be done. You could have your identity stolen or face a lawsuit for uploading illegal files that you never actually uploaded.