What is Malware?

Malware is malicious software designed to compromise computer devices and IT networks. There are different objectives of injecting malware into a computer system. Some examples include:

Malware is usually injected into a system when a user interacts with an email or website containing infected links - a cyberattack method known as phishing.

Common Types of Malware

There are 10 common types of malware.

  1. Viruses
  2. Worms
  3. Trojans
  4. Spyware
  5. Adware
  6. Ransomware
  7. Keyloggers
  8. Logic Bombs
  9. Adware
  10. Rootkits

Key takeaways

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    Malware is short for malicious software.
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    To mitigate the risk of malware injections, never interact with suspicious emails or websites.
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    Software vulnerabilities could facilitate malware injections. This can be prevented by installing the latest security patches.
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