  We consider the problem of distributing a vaccine for immunizing a scale-free
network against a given virus or worm. We introduce a new method, based on
vaccine dissemination, that seems to reflect more accurately what is expected
to occur in real-world networks. Also, since the dissemination is performed
using only local information, the method can be easily employed in practice.
Using a random-graph framework, we analyze our method both mathematically and
by means of simulations. We demonstrate its efficacy regarding the trade-off
between the expected number of nodes that receive the vaccine and the network's
resulting vulnerability to develop an epidemic as the virus or worm attempts to
infect one of its nodes. For some scenarios, the new method is seen to render
the network practically invulnerable to attacks while requiring only a small
fraction of the nodes to receive the vaccine.
