Malware, Spyware, Trojans… The Many Forms of a Website Virus

Malware, otherwise referred to as a Malicious Software Program, is harmful software which can infiltrate your website and cause major irreversible damage via website hacking. Website malware can find its way into your site, perform modifications to your content, and gain access to not only your own personal information, but your customer’s sensitive information as well.

Furthermore, malware can also affect your visitors’ experience while browsing your website with the use of pop-up ads which prompt them to visit a specific site or click on an advertisement. These form of website virus programs can also infect a potential customer’s computer system if they were to be mistaken as innocent and acted upon.

In order to protect your website and, more importantly, your customer’s and your own personal information from malware, it would be beneficial to both parties to acquire a service that monitors malware activity. This, ultimately, prevents website hacking and increases the number of customers and your profits. A website monitor is just the solution for preventing website hacking before it even begins. Not only will a website monitor keep your website data and content secure, it will also prevent your site from being added to the Google Blacklist.

Website Malware in Many Forms

As previously mentioned, website malware is devious malicious software that has the ability to collect personal information, destroy information and programs, and damage sensitive files. Without the proper website security to search for hacker activity and suspicious malware programs, some serious harm can be inflicted on your website and to your computer system.

Malware can present itself in many shapes and forms which also include Spyware and Trojan horses – these can cause some serious irrevocable damage to website files. These nasty programs are can perpetrate identity theft, and release worms and viruses which can spread and permanently damage your computer system as well as other peoples’ systems.

Trojan Horses and Your Website

A trojan horse has the ability to disguise itself as a harmless and beneficial software program which can fool many into thinking they’re downloading some innocent, helpful software. A trojan horse is basically a virus disguised as some useful, and usually free, computer software application. The name “Trojan Horse” is characteristically derived from the legendary “Trojan Horse” used by the Greeks to secretly infiltrate the ancient city of Troy.

Trojan horses can present themselves in many clever ways. The more common of the type is a Remote Access Trojan. This virtually gives the hacker complete control over the computer system which can lead to theft of important files, passwords, financial and personal information. Another popular trojan is a password sending trojan, which collects all passwords that have been cached in your system; these can be website, FTP service, email, and instant messaging passwords that are taken unknowingly from the victim until it’s too late. Additional harmful trojans to be aware of include:

• Key Loggers – These trojans have the ability to log user keystrokes. This log information, which can include passwords, financial information, and personal information, is then passed on to the hacker’s email address.
• Destructive Trojans – These trojans are essentially meant to devastate and erase important programs and files from the victim’s computer system. This vicious program is either controlled directly by the hacker or set to initiate at a pre-determined date and time.
• FTP Trojans – This is a simple trojan compared to others, which is tasked to open the FTP transfer port. This can allow anyone to access your computer system.
• DOS Trojans – Formally known as a Denial of Service trojan, is essentially designed to initiate excessive amounts of web traffic over the user’s server. This makes it difficult to effectively visit internet sites and impedes download capability.
• Proxy Trojans – This sneaky trojan is capable of utilizing the user’s computer as a proxy server. This ultimately allows anonymous access to those whose main purpose is to perpetrate criminal or illicit activity over the internet using stolen identities.
• Software Detection Trojans – These trojans are capable of overriding a computer system’s antivirus system and/or firewall, which in turn allows the hacker full access to information on stored on the machine.

Besides refraining from opening suspicious emails or downloads, the most beneficial way of preventing a trojan horse from infecting your website is with the use of a special website monitor. This invaluable tool can detect suspicious activity before it causes any serious damage to your website.

Protecting Your Website from Spyware

Spyware, also referred to as a spybot or tracking software, is basically another type of unauthorized program designed to collect sensitive information from an individual without prior consent. It is more commonly known to infect computer systems via downloads or after a new program installation. Spyware can also infect a user’s system with the click of a pop-up window or via a drive-by download. This secretly places a cookie in an unsuspecting visitor’s computer system to collect and distribute sensitive information for marketing purposes.

A website hacker finds it easier than ever to infiltrate a website and apply these types of malicious software applications by altering website files and content. This makes the web more dangerous than it has ever been in the past.

Obviously a website scanning solution is necessary as it will audit your website security and provide valuable solutions for maintaining a safe and enjoyable website for you and your customers.