• What is malware?
• Malware types
• Where does the malware come from?
• How to protect ourselves from malware?

We explain what malware is and the types of malware that exist. Also, where it comes from and how to protect ourselves from this software.

Malware infiltrates a computer system and carries out covert activities.

What is malware?

In computing It is understood by malware (contraction in English ofmalices software, that is, “malicious program”) to the different forms of software malicious whose objective is to infiltrate into a computer system and once carry out a series of covert activities, ranging from sabotage of the system itself, the theft of data confidential information, the appropriation of your computing resources and / or the contagion of other systems that may be on the network.

These types of malicious programs made their appearance during the 1980s, when computers personalities began to become popular all over the world, and currently they have in Internet their preferred means of propagation, either through email suspicious (Spam), websites infected, files shared online, etc.

The origin of malware and computer viruses may initially have been a joke or a play, by young programmers, unaware of the damage they could cause. However, since then malicious software has evolved and grown in illegal uses, to the point that the use of tools has become imperative antivirus.

According to reports from the business F-Secure, in 2007 there would have been as much malware as in the previous 20 years, and according to Panda Security, in 2011 73,000 new computer threats were created per day, which far exceeds the production of legal software.

Malware types

Trojan malware invites the user to run it and thus open malicious programs.

According to its method of propagation, we can talk about various types of malware, such as:

• Viruses and worms (worms). It is software that invades the system and performs harmful actions, such as deleting critical components from the system. Operating system, after having used its resources to send itself by email or other means, thus spreading the infection.
• Hidden malware. These are harmful programs whose entry into the system and act on it occurs silently, without the Username I noticed.
  • Trojans. Disguised as something harmless or beneficial, these programs invite the user to run them, and then open the door to hundreds of others. programs malicious.
  • Backdoors. Its name in English means "back door", since it allows third parties access to the computer system, evading the usual controls and protocols of communication.
  • Drive-by downloads. Malicious pieces of software that are automatically downloaded by certain Web pages without asking the user for authorization or allowing him to stop it in time, and open the door to other forms of virtual invasion.
  • Rootkits. These are techniques for modifying key files of the Operating System, to allow the malware present to remain hidden from the installed detection programs.
• Advertising malware.
  • Spyware. Programs that collect secretly information of the pages visited on the Internet and use it to bombard us with Spam.
  • Adware. They work the same as spyware, but showing us online advertising while we browse.
  • Hijackers. “Hijackers” programs that modify the configuration of the browser from the Internet, forcing it to start on a certain Web page or to display certain messages.
• Information hijackers.
  • Keyloggers. Programs that secretly collect user passwords and send them to an anonymous requester, such as credit card numbers, etc.
  • Stealers. Similar to keyloggers, they steal sensitive information from the user, but only what is stored on the computer.
  • Dialers. Not so popular anymore since the bulk of Internet connections are by Broadband, these programs stole the telephone signal and allowed illegal calls to be made remotely. 
  • Botnets. This is the name given to sets of computers that respond to third-party instructions remotely and secretly, allowing them to indirectly send Spam or viruses, making the source more difficult to trace.
  • Ransomware. Various forms of software that break into user accounts online, modify the password, and then ask for a ransom payment to release it.

Where does the malware come from?

We come into contact with malware in a variety of ways, on high-traffic sites like porn networks or gambling sites, or by opening suspicious email attachments.

Most of the malware comes from China and the United States, the world's largest software producers, or from other nations similar. Occasionally these malicious programs may even come from Business recognized, hidden in their products.

A famous case has been that of the process "WindowsTelemetry"Which include the new versions of Windows, and that it is capable of collecting information about habits of the user and secretly send them to Microsoft, using system resources for this.

How to protect ourselves from malware?

Installing an antivirus program is one of the best options to protect yourself from malware.

The best option to protect yourself from malware is to install an antivirus and antimalware program on the computer, which must be up-to-date in its virus definitions, and to which we must grant the necessary permissions to monitor the entry of unsolicited software into the system.

It is also useful to have the Operating System and our main applications updated, since many security updates compensate for weaknesses in the system that can be exploited by these malicious programs.

And as a measure of digital hygiene, avoid installing unknown software on the machine, as well as opening suspicious emails, let alone clicking on advertisements that seem too good to be true.