Software Reviews

Since its inception, the Internet has brought us many great things - a wealth of information, opportunities in E-commerce and practically any product or service one can imagine. The Internet is prevalent in many areas of computing and provides benefits for corporate networks and home users alike. For those who aren’t careful, these perks come at a price, one that can place your personal data at great risk.

While media coverage tends to focus on Internet predators and identity theft scams, there is one common threat more likely to affect you than any other - malware! Malware is a combination of the terms “malicious” and “software”, a type of program you do not want on your computer. Some of the most popular forms of malware include computer viruses, worms and Trojan horses.

Computer viruses have been around for years, long before the Internet came into play. In order to be effective it must be executed by human intervention which typically occurs when clicking on an infected file. A computer virus propagates throughout a compromised machine, infecting numerous files along the way. Similar to a human virus, a computer virus propagates itself to other machines to further spread the infection.

Computer worms are often confused with viruses as their methods of distribution and destruction are quite similar. There is one exception however - unlike a virus, a worm does not require human intervention to be executed. Once it gets into your system, it has the ability to launch itself. Although there have been a few exceptions, most computer worms do not infect system files, but propagate themselves to other host machines.

The Trojan horse may be the most complex of all malware. Though often associated with a computer virus as well, the Trojan is much different. It usually approaches you via email or website as a beneficial program. A Trojan may be disguised as a video game, download management utility or even anti-virus software. When installed onto your computer, it often downloads other malicious programs such as viruses and spyware.

The impact of malware ranges widely from subtle to catastrophic. It may simply slow down the performance of your computer or delete all of your important files. In some instances, an infection may become so severe that the machine becomes completely inoperable. With such consequences, its no wonder that the anti-virus industry is thriving with revenue.

Prevention

So what can one do to protect themselves from all the infectious malware circulating on the Internet? The answer is simple - prevention. You must learn how these infectious programs are contracted and practice those activities with caution. This includes general web surfing, handling emails and the files attached to them, and file downloads. A piece of malware never announces its presence and usually appears to be something interesting or useful.

Furthermore, you can implement continuous protection and secure your computer with reliable anti-virus software. Vendors such as McAfee and Symantec offer all-in-one solutions that will protect you from viruses, worms, Trojans and more sophisticated forms of malware like intrusive spyware. Without sound security, you’re one step away from being the next victim.