One fine Sunday afternoon, you grab a packet of chips and a chilled bottle of soda to go with it. You relax back on your comfortable couch and open up your laptop to watch a Hollywood flick. You enter your correct log in id and password, then click go. It gives you log in error. It does the same repeatedly. That’s when you find out that this is because of SQL injection, a web application attack. This is one instance of the many encounters with malware. To avoid such unpleasant encounters, it is wise to get an idea of the different types of malware. Type No.1: Viruses This one is pretty famous, or infamous – everyone around the house knows about it. It tops the malware list. It pretty much exists everywhere and it is that kind of software that you hear is bad for your computer. Type No. 2: Worms This is a bit different from the very famous viruses. This type of malware hides inside of different program files inside your computer, such as macros and .exe files. Type No.3: Wabbits These are a rare type of malware. They do not spread across from network to network via email or other online communication tools like viruses. They stick to just one system and happily destroy it to the core. Type No. 4: Trojans Trojans or Trojan Horses are the most evil kind of malware that you can ever think of. This includes DDos and other such malware that can crash your computer once you open a website. They can jam your entire financial data on a website and can spell a lot of trouble for you. Type No.5 Spyware Yes, you got that right. This is a kind of malicious software that spies on you. It tracks your internet activity on a very frequent basis to put relevant advertising material on your favorite pages. Type No.6: Rootkit A hacker who infringes your privacy and gets hold of your personal information online installs a rootkit. It cleverly hides itself in the system’s processor so that it does not get spotted. It is the most difficult malware out of the many to get rid of from your system. It is advisable to get a web application firewall to avoid such attacks. If you cannot find a web application firewall for yourself online, you can go get it from your computer technician who can help you find one.
