Types of Viruses & Spyware Found on Computers

Infection Types

Saint Louis, Missouri:
314-308-5247

What We Offer

  • We come to you
  • Over 11 years of experience
  • Serving both residential and small-businesses
  • St. Charles, Missouri
  • Spring Hill, Florida
Spring Hill, Florida:
352-200-2365
 
 

Infections such as viruses & spyware are one of the leading causes of poor performance on a computer. Plus there is always the possibility that the security of your computer is breached and personal information is being retrieved from your computer. We have been successfully fighting virus and spyware infections for over 11 years. We effectively remove the problem and are also able to install free software that will protect your computer from future infections. Call us and let us help assess your problem with a phone call - before we come out! Click HERE for a discount and to ask us to contact you!
Here is more information about viruses and spyware: Symptoms of viruses and spyware    Solutions for viruses and spyware

 
 

Virus, Spyware & Other Infections
What is a Virus?
A virus is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer.
What is Spyware?
Spyware is a type of malware that can be installed on computers and which collects small pieces of information about users without their knowledge.

 
 

What are the different types of viruses?
Trojan Horse:
A trojan horse program has the appearance of having a useful and desired function but secretly the program performs other, undesired functions. A Trojan Horse causes damage or compromises the security of the computer. A Trojan Horse must be sent by someone or carried by another program and may cause anything undesirable for a computer user, including data destruction or allowing another computer to gain access.
Worms:
A worm is a program that creates copies of itself; for example, from one disk drive to another, or by copying itself using email or another transport mechanism. The worm may do damage and compromise the security of the computer.
Boot sector Virus:
A virus which attaches itself to the first part of the hard disk that is read by the computer when it starts. These are normally spread by floppy disks.
Macro Virus:
Macro viruses are viruses that use another program's macro language to distribute themselves. They infect documents such as Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel and are typically spread to other similar documents.
Rootkit Virus:
A rootkit virus is an undetectable virus which attempts to allow someone to gain control of a computer system. These viruses are usually installed by trojans and are normally disguised as operating system files.
Polymorphic Viruses:
A polymorphic virus not only replicates itself by creating multiple files of itself, but it also changes it's digital signature every time it replicates. This makes it difficult for antivirus software to detect.
Logic Bombs/Time Bombs:
These are viruses which are programmed to initiate at a specific date or when a specific event occurs. Some examples are a virus which deletes your photos on Halloween, or a virus which deletes a database table if a certain employee gets fired.

  
 

What are the different types of Spyware?
Recorders:
Recorders make copies of data on the affected computer. Data thieves take this information to discover the likes and interests of the computer users and sell this data to businesses seeking to market to that demographic. Other, more devious, uses for recorders exist. For instance, some spyware recorders capture personal data, such as passwords or financial information, and may contribute to identity theft.
Web Bugs:
Designed to enable advertisements to appear on a computer, web bugs facilitate pop-up ads and other unwanted solicitations. Another format of web bug secretly inserts a shortcut to an advertiser's website into the user's Favorites list. The intention is to generate hits to the web site, which generates higher traffic statistics and revenues. Web bugs are often difficult to remove. Even when a program deletes the bug, some have self-replication tools built in, causing the program to reappear the next time the computer reboots.
Hijacking:
Some spyware programs resort to physically hijacking the computer. For instance, a hijacking spyware can send Spam emails to people in your contact list, giving the appearance the messages came from you. This technique also is utilized to spread computer viruses and multiply itself on the computers of your contacts. Trojan spyware programs often come disguised as a useful program that, in fact, delivers unwanted programs to the machine. These programs often allow hackers to control or manipulate functions on the computer.
Adware:
Adware is advertising-supported software that displays pop-up advertisements. Although seemingly harmless, some adware programs may track your Web surfing habits.