Malware, Viruses and Trojans - the Most Important Threats, Routes of Infection and Signs

Protection against malware, Trojans and viruses is more important than ever given the sophisticated attack techniques used by hackers and cybercriminals. The various types of malware differ primarily in terms of the route of infection, malware technology and damage output. Here are the main types of malware:

• Viruses. They create themselves via duplicates in programs and documents, but do not actively spread.
• Computer worms. Malware number 1 since the triumph of the WWW. Worms actively infect other computers and systems and, unlike viruses, do not need a host.
• Trojan horse e, or Trojan for short. In addition to the “benign” part of the program, they also have a malware part that spreads camouflaged through the use of the useful part by the user.
• Backdoor malware. They are brought in via viruses, worms or Trojan horses and help third parties gain access to the computer. The best-known example: spam mail
• Spyware and adware. These are malicious programs that, in addition to the useful software, research user behaviour and forward the data obtained to third parties, mostly the advertising industry. The malware usually remains active even after the software has been uninstalled. Read more about spyware and adware
• Scareware. This malware manipulates the user by, for example, pointing out alleged dangers such as "virus risk" and luring them into installing or buying harmful software.

Who is actually responsible for malware? Who will circulate you? With what aim? The range of malware originators is wide:

·         Criminal groups: specialized in cybercrime.

·         State organizations: for example secret services.

·         Individuals: nerds and other freaks who want to get famous.

Learn how to stop malware, viruses and trojans with antivirus.

How do users catch computer malware - the most common routes of infection

Even if there are millions of malware types, Trojans, viruses & Co., they have one thing in common: They run camouflaged in the background. Therefore, users should always know the most important sources and routes of infection preventively:

1.    Via e-mail  - manipulated attachments and links, also in spam emails which, for example, smuggle the user onto infected websites. Awareness of this route of infection has increased, but many pests still spread this way. Malware systems combine millions of computers into " botnets ", which are then used as spam hitters.

2.    Via Office programs  - Resourceful programmers, for example, smuggle malware macros into Excel documents. Users often wrongly assume that Office programs cannot be malicious in principle.

3.    By downloading unknown software from the web. - malware is spread particularly frequently via peer-to-peer networks. So the pulled down horror movie from a sharing platform can have much larger, unwanted horror ready for the user.

4.    Via the web browser and plugins - the user surfs on a reputable website, but becomes the victim of cybercrime there. This path of infection, which is now very common, is called "drive-by infection". According to investigations by the Danish security company CSIS Security Group, the main infection routes in the "drive-by infection" are:

• Oracle Java at 37%
• Adobe / Acrobat Reader at 32%
• Adobe Flash at 16%
• Microsoft's Internet Explorer at 10%.

5.    Via social hacking methods such as phishing and pharming - they exploit the good faith of users.

6.    Via infected CD / DVDs and USB sticks  - the malware starts programs automatically as soon as the user inserts a data carrier into the drive. As of Windows 7, protection against this "auto-run" is activated by default.

According to Microsoft's semi-annual security report "Security Intelligence Report", security gaps in user programs (63.5 per cent), Windows and other operating systems (22 per cent) and browsers (14 per cent, see also 4. ) are the main entry points for malware.

How do I know that I have been hit by malware programs and that I am being hacked?

Even if there are now many types of computer malware - they have one thing in common: the malware camouflages its true intention and runs in the background. As a rule, Internet users initially do not notice that they are being attacked. The user should go into alarm mode if he notices the following changes:

• The computer shuts down for no apparent reason and may display a "blue screen".
• The computer does not start at all or only very slowly.
• Significantly reduced speed when starting up or opening files. The malware slows down the computer with its hunger for resources. For example, it is worth taking a look at the Task Manager using the key combination "Ctrl-Alt-Del".
• The mouse reacts much more slowly than usual.
• Programs start by themselves.
• Certain drives, hard disks or data carriers of the operating the system can no longer be accessed.
• Files cannot be edited or saved.
• The Internet browser homepage changed without any action by the user.
• Unwanted toolbars in the browser can be a common indicator of malware.
• Increase in unwanted, annoying popup windows on known, frequently visited websites.
• Unusually or conspicuously frequent password queries or unusual processes in online shopping or online banking.