How Computer Viruses Attacks?

The possibility of one person encountering some kind of computer virus is high, especially with billions of people using technology every single day, be it for personal or work purposes.

Computer viruses are comparable to biological viruses because they can spread relatively quickly. Knowing how they spread is the first step to preventing your device from getting infected.

How Does a Computer Virus Spread?

There are different types of computer viruses; some are common while others are not. Computer viruses are created to alter one’s computer and spread from one to another.

Phishing Emails

No matter what emailing service you are using, you are bound to receive countless promotional emails in your inbox, especially if you unconsciously subscribe to various advertisements, you see online.

Such emails tend to carry a string of malicious attachments and links, and when you unsuspectingly open these things, they can infect your computer system, causing it to malfunction and possibly lose data and/or money.

Remember that hackers can mask malicious things into images or good call-to-action texts or buttons, prompting you to click on them without second thoughts.

Online Downloads

Anything you download over the internet can contain a virus. May it be a document, free software trials, applications, or even free virus protection software. Once you install these files, a computer virus can spread like wildfire, wreaking havoc on your system.

Another easy target for hackers is illegal downloads, such as movies, games, or music that even a good anti-virus won’t be able to prevent from spreading.

Social Media

Social media is the latest tactic in spreading computer viruses. There are numerous instances of hacks from social networking websites such as Facebook. Links are shared everywhere on these platforms, so be cautious when clicking on videos, images, or links.

Know when to spot illegitimate news sites, suspicious videos, or images on social media to avoid being a victim.

Most Harmful Types of Computer Viruses

Cybercriminals use scheming tools and techniques to evade security firewalls and manipulate users into giving up sensitive information. These criminals are always looking for new ways to breach a system to steal data or money.

Getting infected by a computer virus can happen to all of us. Often, they are easy to treat, but in some cases, it can be a complete disaster turning devices into a mess.

To give you a brief background, here are four of the most dangerous computer viruses of all time and how they affect businesses.

ILOVEYOU

This virus caused a total of $10 billion of damage, infecting almost 10% of computers around the world. This virus was transmitted via email containing a subject line of “ILOVEYOU” that makes it hard for a user to ignore.

The email also contained an attachment with a filename: Love-Letter-For-You.TXT.vbs. Once the file is opened, this virus automatically emails itself to the first 50 contacts available in the address book, causing it to spread rapidly.

Melissa

This is another virus that spreads in the form of an email attachment: “List.doc.” Similar to the ILOVEYOU virus, once the file is opened, it will email itself to the first 50 contacts with a message: “Here is that document you asked for…do not show anyone else.”

My Doom

My Doom infected around two million PCs, hitting the malware world back in 2004. My Doom spread exponentially through email with random email addresses of senders and subject lines.

The email receiver would be tricked into considering the message as bounced because it reads: Mail Transaction Failed. But as soon as the user clicks on the message, this email worm will send itself to email addresses and copy itself to any P2P program’s folder to circulate through the network.

Code Red

Code Red took advantage of the Microsoft IIS web server as it spread on these servers in 2001. This virus doesn’t need a user to open an email attachment or execute a file since it only requires an active internet connection.

Once the device is infected, it made hundreds of copies of itself, eating up system resources. One memorable symptom of this virus was that it leaves behind a message, “Hacked by Chinese!” on infected web pages.

This virus was estimated to cause $2 billion in lost productivity by infecting one million PCs.

Conclusion

Computer viruses exist, and as individuals whose work relies on a computer, being on guard is essential.

If you’re alerted to the presence of a computer virus, removing it immediately is the best course of action. The longer it stays on your system, the more damage it can do.

For the best solutions to these types of threats, contact our team at Uniserve today!