10 Things To Know About Computer Viruses

Computer viruses are a bane to both computers and their users. It can negatively affect a computer's performance to the point that you'll need to reformat the entire machine to get it back to its peak performance, costing you valuable amounts of data and time.

However, to fight against these viruses, it's often best to know more about them first.

Here are some things (and a little bit of trivia) you may want to know about computer viruses:

It Is Just Like A Real-Life Virus

A computer virus is a string of code maliciously designed to alter the way a computer operates and spread it from one computer to another, much like real-life viruses, per Norton.

It Operates And Attacks Your Computer Like a Real-Life Virus Would On Your Body

A computer virus operates by inserting or attaching itself to a legitimate program or document that supports macros to execute its code. During this execution process, it can corrupt or destroy some of your computer's system software, causing unexpected or damaging effects.

It Needs a Trigger To Execute Its Code

If a computer virus has a real-life counterpart, it would have to be cancer cells. Much like these hyperactive cells when triggered by a certain lifestyle choice or genetic signals passed on by heredity, a virus can lay dormant inside a computer system until certain circumstances, such as the running of an infected program, cause the virus to execute its malicious code.

Once it has infected your computer, it can then steal sensitive information, corrupt files, spam your email contacts, and even take over your computer.

It Can Spread Itself In Many Ways

As mentioned earlier, a virus needs to be attached to a legitimate program or document that supports macros to execute its code. As such, it can spread itself through internet file downloads, email and text message attachments, and social media scam links. These were made to appear legitimate when they are not

Use Antiviruses And Ignore Suspicious Files and Links To Protect Your Computer

The best protection you can provide your computer is getting a trusted antivirus program and antispyware software, per the National Cybersecurity Alliance. These two usually come together in the case of Norton and McAfee, according to Safety Detectives.

Also, avoid opening or clicking on suspicious programs, documents, images, and links, which may harbor a computer virus that could be triggered when you open them.

A Computer Virus Became a Social Engineering Pioneer

Website Security Store mentioned that the I Love You Virus, or "Love Bug," is one of the earliest computer-based social engineering attacks. The virus manipulated people's curiosity and emotions to open an infected attachment that sole registered key of the compromised user and accessed their contact list to send the same email to the user's contacts.

The virus was originally a concept for a rejected thesis of a Filipino student named Onel De Guzman. Despite his professors' rejection, De Guzman carried on, creating what would later be known as the I Love You virus.

De Guzman's virus spread to more than 45 million computers across the globe, causing more than $10 billion in damages.

Computer Viruses Came From A (Computer) Worm

Back in the 70s, computer programs and the internet were developed for military network defense purposes, according to Tech25. During this time, Creeper, an experimental self-replicating virus made by one Bob Thomas of BBN Technologies steadily corrupted and spread at the nearby connected units at the US Military's DEC PDP-10 mainframe in the early 1970s.

Thomas admitted that the virus, which would later be known as a computer worm, wasn't meant to harm or damage, but to illustrate a mobile application's working principle, per History Computer.

Computer Bugs Are Not Viruses

Computer Bugs are program errors made by programmers due to badly written or incorrect code, but they are not viruses by themselves. However, computer viruses could come from a program's coding mishaps, turning the program itself into a computer virus.

The First Virus Was Created As A Security Test

Thomas' Creeper was not only meant to illustrate a mobile application's working principle, but it also served as a security test for the US Military's DEC PDP-10 mainframe, which was hit hard by the computer worm.

The Worst Computer Virus In History Caused More Than $38 Billion Worth of Damages

If the I Love You virus didn't sound dangerous to you, then this computer virus might.

The Mydoom computer virus is the world's most destructive virus and the fastest spreading virus in 2004, with it causing up to $38 billion in damages at the time.

The virus was able to do so thanks to it spreading through mass emailing, just like the I Love You virus. This time, instead of flattering words, the virus sent victims emails with unusual subject lines and an attachment. Meanwhile, the email's body reads, "I'm just doing my job, nothing personal, sorry," according to Okta.

Opening said attachment would run the virus' code, accessing the victim's email address book and sends the same infected email to them.

What makes this virus terrifying is that it is still active in 2019, with it accounting for 1% of all malware-containing emails in that year.