Malware

Malware

1. Virus'

   • A virus will often be designed to delete or corrupt data.
   • This is a piece of code that is designed to replicate itself throughout the computer or network. For example it will add itself to a file on your computer and, every time the file is opened, the virus runs and once more seeks out other files to infect.

2. Worm

   • This behaves just like a virus, but does not necessarily harm files. Instead, it tries to copy itself so many times that the whole system runs out of resources and crashes.
   • One of the most famous worms is the ILOVEYOU email worm. In 2000, it managed to infect nearly 10% of all internet connected computers, causing an estimated $8 billion in damages.

3. Trojan

   • Named after the famous Greek story of the Trojan Horse.
   • A trojan appears to be a harmless application - a downloaded game for example. You play the game, but meanwhile it is running in the background carrying out its real intent - maybe letting someone else access to your computer.

4. Spyware

   • Spyware is often used for identity theft or to gather passwords for bank accounts.
   • Spyware stays hidden out of view and is designed to spy on your computer, looking for personal information, passwords and so on.

5. Ransomware

   • Ransomware encrypts critical files and data, making them unusable. Eventually it presents the user with a ransom, demanding money be sent to the attackers to unlock the system.

6. Scareware

   • Scareware will cause a pop-up to appear on your screen which will say something like 'Your computer has a virus.
   • In reality, you do not actually have a virus. The scareware it trying to frighten you into purchasing and downloading the software which itself may actually contain malware.

7. Rootkits

   • Rootkits give other people permissions and access to your computer, allowing them to take it over remotely and do whatever they like.
   • It is designed to run even before the operating system itself is booted up and it continues to stay active in the background while you are using the computer.