Internet Security: Defining the Threats

More and more people are starting to use the internet for more than just e-mail anymore. Buying and selling, blogging, social networking, stock market trading, and even students are using it for research. But along with the perks of having such a vast library of knowledge, comes the ever increasing dangers that come from the internet.

In the dark underbelly of the World Wide Web, is a dark and sinister being, whose sole purpose is theft, deceit and control. Massive botnets, capable of bringing forth a rain of destruction on ISP’s and servers, are growing rapidly. ISPs, serving up child pornography, malicious software, viruses and spam are an ever growing problem. So, how do we protect ourselves from this?

China, who has laws against internet pornography, recently put in place a law that requires all computers sold in China to have internet filtering software/hardware to keep people from viewing pornography on the web. President Barak Obama has created a new Cyber Task Force to help fight hackers and other perils of the internet. But it really isn’t enough. Even innocent surfing can infect your computers at home.

Viruses, malware spyware and adware can all wreak havoc on your computer system, turning it into a zombie, causing loss of important data, damaged hardware, and even damaging an entire network. In order to protect yourself, you need to understand what the differences are in malicious software.

There are 5 main types of malicious software. Adware, Spyware, Malware, Worms and Viruses. All of them are bad, but some are less intrusive than others. Here is a clear description of each.

1. Adware. Adware is a tool used by advertisers to popup advertisements based on your searches and the websites you visit. It’s not really intrusive, but can potentially cause harm to your computer. Adware is generally easy to remove, but also very easy to get.

2. Spyware. Spyware is a dangerous thing. Spyware watches what you input into fields on the internet, collecting credit card numbers, addresses, social security numbers, bank cards and accounts, and then sending them to the software maker. Spyware is not just dangerous to your computer, but also to your identity and finances.

3. Malware. Malware comes in many forms. Generally injected unknowingly by you, Malware can be devastating to your computer system. Most malware is capable of shutting down even the best Antivirus/spyware/adware protection software you can buy. Malicious software is good at disguising itself in such a way that you are fooled into thinking you have a problem with your computer. Windows has a tool called the Microsoft Security Center. Well known Malware programs like Antivirus 2009 can shut this off, then generate its own window, an exact replica, and trick you into thinking you might have a problem. The program will shut down your Norton, McAfee, or Kaspersky and put its own identical icon in the corner of your screen, and then start screaming that your computer has a problem. You click the buttons as you normally would in your antivirus software, not realizing it’s a fake; and suddenly it asks you to make a payment. This is your first tip off that something is not right. Unfortunately, the creators are making huge amounts of money from unsuspecting customers. You input your card number, and suddenly you have a maxed out credit card. The software sends this information to its maker, who then sells it to someone who then makes large purchases online.

Unfortunately, that person is outside of any internet police jurisdiction, so you are out of luck, money, and you have a computer that is severely infected. Malware is also often the hardest type of malicious software to remove. It usually corrupts the registry keys that are essential to your computers welfare, and removing the infection can be devastating.

4. Worms. Worms are similar to viruses, but different. They are a file or entity on the internet, generally from a large botnet, that seek out and inject malicious code into open ports on your computer system. They then use that code to take control, inject viruses, steal information, or whatever they were designed to do.

For example, Myspace itself is not dangerous, but people customize their profiles using sites like pimpmyprofile.com and other sites. These sites may not even know it, but sometimes are providing malicious code. In order to “pimp” your profile out, you go to the designers site, pick out your designs, then copy the code and paste it into your profile. Unfortunately, sometimes hidden in that code is a link or passage for viruses, worms, malware, adware or spyware to be served up to computers viewing the code, even though the viewer doesn’t know it. A quick way to know that you just injected your computer is if you get a little popup or dropdown asking you if you want to execute a program to view content, or active-x control. This is a no-no. A codec popup to view a video can also tip you off, and may be the wrong thing to do. Pornography websites are notorious for the use of this kind of injection.

5. And last but not least, Viruses. A computer virus is like the common cold virus. A virus’ sole purpose other than its infection, is to spread itself. Multiply. Malware could be the injection from a virus. A virus may inject code into your computer that allows a botnet to assume control of your PC and dish up more of itself.

To block from all these threats (and more), consider our product reviews of a variety of security solutions:

AntiVirus Software

Internet Security Suites

Premium Security Suites

Personal Firewall Software

Anti-Spyware Software