Virus Definitions
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File virus - These types of viruses usually affect the files on your computer with the extension .COM and .EXE. They either replace or insert malicious code to these files. Hoax - An e-mail warning of some devastating virus. The e-mail states that this knowledge is new and unknown to the public. It may mention a company or instituition whose name is known by the public to present a valid facade. Typically there's no file attachment in the e-mail and no reference to a third party who can validate the claim and the general 'tone' of the message. Macro virus - A viral program written using Word's or Excel's macro programming language. These viruses, come attached to a Word document without your knowledge. When you open the Word document, the virus program executes and performs what its programmed to do. Trojan Horses - Is a malicious program like a virus or worm, but it doesn't replicate itself from one computer to another. Trojan horse programs disguise themselves as something useful like a screen saver or computer game. Virus - A computer program written in a programming language with the ability to replicate or create copies of itself. The intent of the virus is to perform some function on the computer without the consent of the user. The act may be as mischievous as displaying some text or play a piece of music, or as destructive as overwriting system files necessary for the computer to function properly. Worms -Worms are like a viruses in that they try to copy (replicate) themselves over the network and onto another computer through an unprotected shared folder or directory. The Loveletter virus is really a worm written in Visual Basic Script programming language and its filename ends in .VBS. This worm is included in an e-mail attachment with the filename LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT.vbs. Questions? Please send us e-mail. |