Computers and Technology

Computer security threats have cost most people around $2000 to buy a new laptop. When the threats are infecting their computer, they cannot do anything and have to buy a new computer. Have you ever wondering why your computer is running slow? Or why your memory usage is always 100%? Or are you getting the same pop-up every time you open your web browser? These are caused by the nasty threats that lurk in your computer.

Therefore, computer security is important to all Internet users. These threats bring nothing but trouble and it can also cost you your personal and confidential information. There are ways to remove the threats that didn't cost you near a price of a laptop. But, before you learn how to remove the threats, first you must know what the threats are.

In this article, I will explain ten must-know threats for any computer and Internet users.

1. Internet Worms

Internet worms are programs that can affect another computer on the same network and it works differently from virus. It doesn't need to attach itself to another programs to be harmful and can create an exact copy of itself. Worms spread via network and consume bandwidth. Have you ever wondering why your network connection becomes so slow? It might be because of the worms. Worms can have many malicious effects such as causing a server to crash, make a user's files unusable, or creating a backdoor on target computer.

2. Rootkit

Rootkit can hide it presence in a computer and can avoid detection while running its utilities. It can create a backdoor on target computer and allow hacker to send spam emails or use the target computer to perform denial-of-service attack on servers. Detecting it is difficult as it can conceal its presence in a computer. One way to detect it is by running virus scanner while it's not running. In this case, running the antivirus before the system boots the hard disk.

3. Zombies

When a virus or trojan has infected a user's computer, it will open a 'backdoor' to allow hackers use the infected computer for malicious purpose without the owner knowledge. This infected computer is called the zombie. Furthermore, the hacker can sell the target computer access to others and others can use if for their own purpose. If a spammer has gained an access to the target computer, it will use it to send spam.

4. Browser Hijacker

A browser hijacker can change your browser home page or search pages in your browser. In worse cases, it can disable your internet option so you cannot change the home page to the default home page. Furthermore, the browser hijacker can edit the registry so it can run every time you restart the Windows.

5. Email Virus

Email virus can distribute itself using email as an attachment. When you open the attachment, it will launch the virus and the virus will use the target computer to send the same email with the same attachment to other computer. It can also find files containing email addresses in the target computer and send the same email to the email addresses that it found. Sometimes, it can launch itself when the user views the email even though the user didn't launch the attachment.

6. Mousetrapping

Was there a time when you cannot leave a website? This is called mousetrapping. The website will use a script preventing the Internet user from leaving the website. Sometimes, it will open a new browser and will display the same website. In order to prevent this from happening, you need to disable java script so the script no longer working.

7. Phishing

This is another threat that we faced online. Phishing is a term comes from fishing because the phisher will try to obtain your private information using bogus emails or bogus websites. If the phishers want to obtain your PayPal username and password, they will create a website that is the exact copy of PayPal and will email you asking you to enter your username and password using the link provided. The link they provided in the email will not go to PayPal, instead, it will go to the phishing website and if you enter your username and password, they will use it to get your money out of PayPal.

8. Spam

Spam is the junk emails or bulk emails send by the spammer to numerous recipients aimed to advertise something, scam, or sending virus. Spam can disguise itself as a personal email to bypass the spam blocker. Some spams do no harm but it's a waste of time deleting it and it's also annoying.

9. Spyware

A spyware is software used by hackers and advertisers to gain information about you. When visiting certain websites, you're asked to install this type of software or updates that you need and the updates that you installed are actually spyware. Spyware can also install itself in your computer and it consumes memory usage and will slow down your computer.

10. Adware

Software that displays advertisement in your computer is adware and some of it installed itself in your computer without you knowing. However, not all adware are bad. Some of it is used to advertise something to fund the company. This type of adware will ask and tell you that they will install software that will display related advertisement in your computer. But, adware is a problem if it's too difficult to uninstall, or it installed itself without you knowing, or it hijack your web browser and slow down your computer. This type of adware needs to be removed.