Virus Vs. Worm Vs. Trojan Horse
Malicious software comes in a variety of flavors. Three common types are the virus, the worm and the trojan. They have some behaviors in common, but perform different functions once they are activated on a computer.
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Virus Basics
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Some viruses will corrupt your data or attempt to transmit it over the Internet, while others might only inconvenience you by turning the image on your screen upside down, for example. All viruses will attempt to replicate and spread to other computers.
Virus Replication and Spread
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When floppy disks were common, viruses would copy themselves whenever you put a disk in the drive. The most common modern "vector" for virus spread is email.
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Email Viruses
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Email clients can store databases of contacts. Opening an email containing a virus may infect not only your computer, but the computers of everyone in your contact list. A virus may read your contact list and email itself to all of your contacts.
Worms
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A worm is a type of virus that can replicate and spread continuously without human action, rather than copying itself when the user opens an email or inserts a floppy disk.
Trojan Horse
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A trojan horse appears to be a legitimate application, but is in fact designed to corrupt your data or steal information. These malicious programs can also give their designers access to your computer over the Internet.
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References
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