Differences between Computer Viruses, Malware, Spyware, and Worms

Malware, worms, viruses and spyware all affect computers and harm them. While they may sound alike, all are different from each other and affect the computer in different ways. People usually tend to think that malware, spyware, viruses and worms are alike, but in reality, they are not. Here are the differences between them:

Malware is a general term used to describe any kind of threat to a computer that may cause it harm and damage it to steal you information. The word malware is made up of two words, malicious and software. Therefore, any kind of intrusive software program that threatens the computer and the data inside is considered malware. Viruses, worms, adware, Trojans and spyware, all come under the broad category of malware as they are made to perform harmful operations on the computer machine.

The word virus used to be a general term for computer infections before malware. Now, virus is a specific program that self-replicates. Viruses, once inside the computer, copy themselves from file to file by attaching themselves to something running on the windows. Viruses can spread from one file to another or from one PC to another PC when files are shared. This way, they can harm more than one computer.

Viruses usually get attached to files that are executable, but there are different kinds of computer viruses affecting them in various ways. Some viruses attach themselves to the boot record, autorun scripts, office macros or temporary files. Viruses are mainly designed to wreak havoc inside the computer and make the files useless. Most viruses corrupt files and make it hard to work properly on the windows. To avoid this, one should make sure that antivirus software is installed. It is also best to avoid downloading files from unknown sources or sites. The file names can also suggest if a virus is attached to them, so be sure to look out for that.

Spyware is a software that collects all the information on the PC and sends it to the creator. Private information is sent over the internet to someone without anyone ever finding out. Most spywares are part of marketing strategies over the internet that tells companies what the users prefer so they target them accordingly. However, spyware can also be used to collect password and credit card information, which can be very invasive. The information revealed to an interested party can be benign or very dangerous. Different tool bars that are run on the browser are a good example of spyware.

Worms, like viruses, are also self-replicating but they do not attach themselves to files. Instead, worms use the internet to replicate themselves by finding a hole in any software used. Worms are programs that run at the back of the PC without the user knowing of their presence. They travel over the internet at great speed and infect many PCs. Worms are the most common known malware and are often confused with viruses. Some of the most famous worms are the ILOVEYOU worm, code red worm and SQL Slammar. The iloveyou worm was transmitted through emails and caused huge losses to companies. Code red worm affected many websites and SQL slammar slowed down the speed of the internet. To prevent worms, one needs to make sure that the firewall is intact and an upgraded antivirus program is installed.