The different types of Malware
These days, it seems that everyone is out to get you. And no, you're not paranoid. Your PC or laptop is like a magnet, attracting all sorts of nasty software which is designed to cause you harm to a greater or lesser degree. This software is known generically as malware, and we're going to show you what it is and how it gets on your PC. The benefits of eliminating Malware from your system are great, including boosting your computer's performance, speeding up your Internet access and protecting you from the dire consequences which this kind of software can generate.
What is Malware?
Malware (short for malicious software) is a catch-all term for any software which is harmful to you or your PC. Malware can range from viruses, trojans, worms, bots, adware, spyware and keyloggers. What do the terms mean? Stick around, we'll tell you.
Viruses and Worms
These are the self-propogating computer programs and they have probably been around the longest. In the early days, they had to be distributed to computers by means of physical media, such as floppy disks (remember these), but today, since almost everyone is connected to the Internet, they are generally distributed online via email attachments, or hidden in documents. Don't imagine, however, that the Internet is the only way you can get malware on your system. Every time you insert a stiffy disk, every time you connect a flash memory stick to copy some MP3s from a friend, in fact every time you connect any type of physical storage to your PC, you're running the risk of infecting your computer with some kind of malware.
Just like human viruses, computer viruses can vary in severity, from causing mildly annoying effects, to causing severe damage to files or applications on your PC and even damaging hardware. A Worm is a computer program which can replicate itself and send copies of itself from computer to computer. They often carry software which can cause considerable damage to the PCs which host them and they also can use up computer time and network bandwidth, slowing up PCs and communications systems.
Spyware and Adware
Spyware and Adware are generally contracted by browsing the Internet, as opposed to viruses and worms which are usually email-borne. Adware is the less dangerous type of infection, and can cause pop-up ads to appear on your PC and may cause your browser to direct you to websites which you didn't intend to go to. The intention of Adware is to expose you to commercial advertising in the hope that you will click through and buy something.
Spyware is more surreptitious and potentially much more damaging. Spyware is software installed on your PC which sends information to a third party, without your knowledge or permission. This information can be a record of your browsing habits, which sites you tend to visit and what you like to download. More chillingly, Spyware may be sending your personal information such as name, address, telephone and fax numbers or even details of your credit cards and bank account balances and logon and passwords.
Trojans and Bots
A Trojan (short for Trojan Horse) is a piece of software concealed within a seemingly innocuous item - an email or a download - which can install a "backdoor" into your system so someone else can take control of your PC. A Bot (short for Robot) is an automated piece of software which allows your PC to be taken over and used, sometimes together with thousands of other infected PCs, to help execute Denial of Service attacks against other websites or to send out massive amounts of spam email messages. If anyone traces these illegal attacks back to the source, invariably they will find that your PC was an unwitting victim.
Keyloggers
Keyloggers are used to assist in one of the most harmful of activities on the Internet: identity theft. A Keylogger is a small piece of software which, once installed on your PC, can be used to record everything you type on the keyboard. With this information, criminals can figure out the logins and passwords for your bank accounts, and any codes you use to access secure information. Before you know it, an attacker could have used your information to acquire birth certificates and passports, could have stripped your bank accounts bare, and could have used your credit cards on the Internet to purchase tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of goods.
These are the basic types of malware. As we keep saying, the PC world can be a dangerous place and no, you're not paranoid if you think that people are targeting your computer. They are, and you need to know how to defend yourself.
Other articles in this series will elaborate on how best to protect, not only your computer, but yourself and your family from the potentially devastating effects of Malware.