What is a Computer Malware: In depth Knowledge

What is a Computer malware is now one of the most popular trending news, after the unfortunate Android RansomWare incident many Android users faced. You can read more about it from the link below.

• RansomWare Alert: Android devices are under Attack!

By the end of this article, you will understand what is a malware, Examples of a malware, ways to stop a computer malware attack and many other knowledgeable facts on computer malware generally.

What is a computer malware?

The simplest explanation we can offer to you on what exactly is a malware, is that a computer malware is basically a computer program which is designed by people to cause harm to other people’s computer and in the process also harm the user. It has always been a misconception throughout the past years, if a computer virus is different from a malware.
Well, we are here to help solve such misconception. A Malware is derived from two terms “Malicious” and “Software”. Putting these two phrases together we get that a Malware is a malicious software, making a virus an example of a malware.

• What is Computer Virus: In depth Knowledge
• Types of Computer Virus : In depth Knowledge
• 7 Ways Computer Gets Infected by Virus and Malware

Now we can understand more from our previous articles that a Computer virus program is only attributed to malicious attacks, making virus a category of Malware. Any computer software that causes harm to another user’s computer is termed as a malicious software.

Types of Malware Programs

There are other types of malware programs which are categorized based on their overall functions and threats they cause to other computer users.

1. Computer Virus: This type of computer malware has the ability to replicate itself and also propagate from one computer to another. They were basically built for destructive purposes in general as they cause harm to computer programs or parts of the computer system.
2. RansomWare: This type of malware is majorly concerned with getting a ransom fee from it’s victim by threatening to expose the victims data or not giving the victim access to his/her computer.
3. Trojan Horses: This malware got its name from the ancient Greek story as a result of what it does. The Trojan horse is a malware that disguises itself to resemble a different program just in an attempt to make a victim install it. As soon as it is installed it begins it destructive processes in the background.
4. Adware: This malware program is aimed at luring a victim to make a purchase by displaying advertisements which could be pop ups or banner adverts. Adware are usually used to track a victims browsing history.
5. Spyware: This type of malware is designed to spy on its victims to collect private information without the knowledge of the victim.
6. Key-loggers: This is one very harmful malware that collects almost everything a user performs on his/her computer such as web pages, emails, programs and any keyboard key a user inputs. It sends off these information to the attacker with out the knowledge of the victims or even their permission.
7. Toolkit: This is another dangerous type of malware that is used to gain administrative user level control of the victims computer. Meaning the attacker can perform admin level activities on the victims computer.
8. Back door malware: Just as the name implies, this malware creates a back door access to the victims computer allowing the attacker to remotely access the victims computer without their knowledge

How to know you have been infected

Just as we have signs and symptoms of illnesses before we actually fall ill, computers also have their own way of telling their operators that something is wrong and needs to be checked. The issue here is that, not everyone can tell what these obvious signs and symptoms are. We made an article dedicated to this topic, here they are..
Read: 7 signs to know your Computer has been infected by Virus

How to stop a Malicious attack

After finding out that you have been attacked or you just want to know how to stop a malicious attack. There are certain steps you should take, and these steps should be carried out in an order that shouldn’t put your computer or other connected computers at risk. You can read the guidelines and steps to take here: 5 Steps To Recover Files From Corrupted or Infected External Storage

Also Read:

• How to get rid of a computer virus infection
• Easiest way to Create Shortcuts on Windows Computer