Viruses and Worms in depth Flashcards
What is a Virus ?
A virus is a type of malware that has the potential of spreading itself throughout a system, but not by itself; it takes some level of user action. For example, if a user takes a corrupt file that contains the virus and transfers that file to another device (via a USB, Email, etc.) then that device could now be potentially infected by the virus. Nowadays, this sort of attack would take a bit more technique and more advanced code to embed a virus into a legitimate file (like hiding it w/in the macros of a DOCX or Excel file).
What is a Worm ?
A worm is essentially the same thing as a virus, except that it has the ability to spread itself throughout a system individually (no need for user action). Worms can take over a system in a matter of seconds. They do not require any sort of user interaction, only open network connections. The connection could be an Internet cable connection, it could be a wireless connection, it could be Bluetooth; practically any sort of connection that goes between two devices, a worm could theoretically utilize.
