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What Is Malware? How Malware Works & How to Remove It (AVG)
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https://www.avg.com/en/signal/what-is-malware       
What Is Malware? How Malware Works & How to Remove It

The term malware refers to software that damages devices, steals data, and causes chaos. There are many types of malware — viruses, Trojans, spyware, ransomware, and more — but you can prevent them all with a robust anti-malware tool like AVG AntiVirus FREE. Keep reading to learn how malware works and how to protect yourself against it.   

Malware, a contraction of malicious software, is often created by teams of hackers: usually, they’re just looking to make money, either by spreading the malware themselves or selling it to the highest bidder on the Dark Web. However, there can be other reasons for creating malware too — it can be used as a tool for protest, a way to test security, or even as weapons of war between governments.

But no matter why or how malware comes to be, it’s always bad news when it winds up on your PC. Fortunately, that’s what we’re here to prevent.
What does malware do?

All kinds of things. It’s a very broad category, and what malware does or how malware works changes from file to file. The following is a list of common types of malware, but it's hardly exhaustive:

    Virus: Like their biological namesakes, viruses attach themselves to clean files and infect other clean files. They can spread uncontrollably, damaging a system’s core functionality and deleting or corrupting files. They usually appear as an executable file (.exe).

    Trojans: This kind of malware disguises itself as legitimate software, or is hidden in legitimate software that has been tampered with. It tends to act discreetly and create backdoors in your security to let other malware in.

    Spyware: No surprise here — spyware is malware designed to spy on you. It hides in the background and takes notes on what you do online, including your passwords, credit card numbers, surfing habits, and more.

    Worms: Worms infect entire networks of devices, either local or across the internet, by using network interfaces. It uses each consecutively infected machine to infect others.

    Ransomware: This kind of malware typically locks down your computer and your files, and threatens to erase everything unless you pay a ransom.

    Adware: Though not always malicious in nature, aggressive advertising software can undermine your security just to serve you ads — which can give other malware an easy way in. Plus, let’s face it: pop-ups are really annoying.

    Botnets: Botnets are networks of infected computers that are made to work together under the control of an attacker.

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How to protect against malware

When it comes to malware, prevention is better than a cure. Fortunately, there are some common sense, easy behaviors that minimize your chances of running into any nasty software.

    Don’t trust strangers online! “Social engineering”, which can include strange emails, abrupt alerts, fake profiles, and curiosity-tickling offers, are the #1 method of delivering malware. If you don’t know exactly what it is, don’t click on it.     

    Double-check your downloads! From pirating sites to official storefronts, malware is often lurking just around the corner. So before downloading, always double-check that the provider is trustworthy by carefully reading reviews and comments.

    Get an ad-blocker! Malvertising – where hackers use infected banners or pop-up ads to infect your device – is on the rise. You can’t know which ads are bad: so it’s safer to just block them all with a reliable ad-blocker.

    Careful where you browse! Malware can be found anywhere, but it’s most common in websites with poor backend security, like small, local websites. If you stick to large, reputable sites, you severely reduce your risk of encountering malware.

Unfortunately, even if you follow the above advice to the letter, you might still get infected with malware: hackers have found ways to sneak their viruses into every corner of the web. For real security, you need to combine healthy online habits with powerful and reliable anti-malware software, like AVG AntiVirus FREE, which detects and stops malware before it infects your PC, Mac, or mobile device. How to detect malware

Certain strains of malware are easier to detect than others. Some, like ransomware and adware, make their presence known immediately, either by encrypting your files or by streaming endless ads at you. Others, like Trojans and spyware, go out of their way to hide from you as long as possible, meaning they could be on your system a long time before you realize that they’re present. And then there are others, like viruses and worms, that might operate in secret for a time, before the symptoms of their infection start to appear, such as freezing, deleted or replaced files, sudden shutdowns, or a hyperactive processor.  The only surefire way to detect all malware before it infects your PC, Mac, or mobile is to install anti-malware software, which will come packaged with detection tools and scans that can catch malware currently on your device, as well as block malware trying to infect it.
How to remove malware

Each form of malware has its own way of infecting and damaging computers and data, and so each one requires a different malware removal method. To get started, check out our tips for getting rid of viruses and malware.      Download AVG AntiVirus FREE Get it for Android, iOS, Mac :  https://bits.avcdn.net/productfamily_ANT...ld_RELEASE    Smile Big Grin Thumb
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