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Computer Viruses And Other Malware

Decent Essays

Hope Lansford
Professor Trudy Gift
CYB 101 – Section W01
August 10, 2015

Computer Viruses and Other Malware
Hope Lansford
Hagerstown Community College
CYB-101-W01
August 10, 2015 Abstract
The term “computer virus” is often used as a blanket term for all types of malware. The opposite is true. A computer virus is, simply, yet another type of malware, although one of the most common. This paper will discuss several of the different types of malware, from viruses, to worms, to Trojan horses, what exactly they are, the ways they are used to attack us, and ways to combat them. Perhaps the most important in the fight against malware is the prevention of them. We will discuss ways to prevent being infected by malware, by using programs …show more content…

The term “computer virus” is frequently used to describe any software that is used to cause damage to the computer, although it is merely one type of malware. There are many types of malware currently in use, and there will likely be many more created. Although there are many similarities between the different types of malware, there are also many differences in the ways they are created and the ways they behave.
Common Types of Malware
According to Nate Lord, in an article titled “Common Malware Types”, found on Infosec Island (www.infosecisland.com), although the number of malware programs will “make your head spin”, some of the most common types of malware are: Spyware, Trojan Horse, Virus and Worm. Malware is short for malicious software and is used as a broad term “that refers to a variety of malicious programs”. (Lord, 2012)
Virus
A computer virus is a computer program that is usually hidden within another seemingly innocuous program and that produces copies of itself and inserts them into other programs and usually performs a malicious action (as destroying data) (www.merriam-webster.com, 2015). The traditional computer virus, as we know it, began to emerge in the 1980s, however, the first detected computer virus, known as the Creeper Virus, in the early 1970s (Computer Virus, 2015). The first personal computer virus to appear was in 1982, and was known as “Elk Cloner”. It attached

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