What is Malware and How Does it Affect You?
Malware is software designed to hurt devices, systems and networks. This infamous category of threats includes everything from viruses to ransomware to worms.
It can reach your equipment through compromised webpages, infected email attachments or even instant messaging programs. Once it has gained access it can then perform its nefarious act. The most common forms of malware are viruses (self-replicating), worms, spyware and Trojans.
Viruses can delete files, slow down your system, or in more serious cases, take over your computer entirely. Worms are self-replicating malware that spreads by sending themselves to contacts in your address book. Spyware can go through your equipment searching for passwords and other valuable information. Trojans are malicious versions of innocuous programs that disguise themselves as something useful to get past your security systems and then perform their nefarious function.
Cyber crime causes billions of dollars in damages each year and is on the rise. It can devastate businesses by stealing data, slowing productivity, or in extreme cases shutting down operations. It can also erode a company’s reputation as it has to inform its customers that their data has been compromised by hackers. For individuals, a single hack can leave them with credit card debt, loan defaults and a host of other problems.
As more of our lives move online and more devices become connected to the Internet we are at risk of more malware attacks. Malware attacks can cause damage on a massive scale, affecting entire economies and societies. The days when teenage pranksters created malware are long gone and the threats today are largely designed by professional criminals for their own financial gain.