Pavlov
Active Member
http://www.telkom.co.za/doingmore/index.jsp
Most Telkom ADSL users know that once they have used up their 3GB international portion for the month, its back to national surfing. Many users get frustrated and claim that they have not used the bandwidth. Well, their claims could be true. They didn't use the bandwidth - a piece of malicious code on their computer did. Let me explain by way of categorization of these threats
Where did my bandwidth go?
Perhaps the most familiar threat on the Internet today is the potential for software attacks. Deliberate software attacks occur when an individual or group designs software to attack an unsuspecting system. Malware or malicious code are all common names used to describe this kind of software. They are usually written and designed to damage, destroy or deny services on the target system. Most of these software components fall into the virus, worm, Trojan, logic-bomb and backdoor category.
So what is a virus?
A computer virus is a segment of code that performs malicious actions. It behaves much like that of a pathogen virus attacking animals and plants, replicating itself as it infects. It usually attaches itself to existing programs and uses that program's access into the targeted computer to carry out its code. Most viruses today get into a computer system with the assistance of the end user when opening an infected e-mail or some other trivial action. Damage can range from erasing entire hard drives to chewing up your 3GB ADSL bandwidth in a matter of minutes. Two types exist: a boot virus which infects operating system files, and a macro virus which infects word processors, spreadsheets and database applications.
Worms on the other hand, named after the novel "The shockwave rider" by John Brunner, replicate themselves without the need for other programs. Worms can replicate themselves until all available resources are used. This includes hard drive space, network/ADSL and dial-up bandwidth, through to computer memory. Worms can be delivered through conventional means and also on HTML enabled browsers, spreading themselves on non-protected websites.
Trojan horses are software programs that hide their true function and only start their programmed behavior when activated. This type of code is usually disguised as help programs and software, such as the readme.exe files often found on shareware and freeware packages.
Backdoor/Trap Door: This is software code that installs a backdoor in a system which then allows an attacker easy access to a computer system. One of the greatest concerns are the polymorphism threats which change their shape and are not detectable by techniques that use a preconfigured signature. The end result is that this code can eludes anti-virus software programs or make it very challenging indeed.
The last virus type, which probably frustrates more users and takes up more time and money than all other viruses combined, are virus hoaxes. Users, with all the good intentions in the world, send out warnings of fictitious virus threats which then results in network overload and a lot of wasted time and energy in chasing one's own tail.
So next time your computer seems to slow down, takes up too much of your ADSL bandwidth, or just starts losing data, check your anti-virus, anti-spyware and privacy updates.
What, you don't have these? No wonder your computer is vulnerable. Call Telkom business today for these and more security products that will suit your needs and save you money.
Most Telkom ADSL users know that once they have used up their 3GB international portion for the month, its back to national surfing. Many users get frustrated and claim that they have not used the bandwidth. Well, their claims could be true. They didn't use the bandwidth - a piece of malicious code on their computer did. Let me explain by way of categorization of these threats
Where did my bandwidth go?
Perhaps the most familiar threat on the Internet today is the potential for software attacks. Deliberate software attacks occur when an individual or group designs software to attack an unsuspecting system. Malware or malicious code are all common names used to describe this kind of software. They are usually written and designed to damage, destroy or deny services on the target system. Most of these software components fall into the virus, worm, Trojan, logic-bomb and backdoor category.
So what is a virus?
A computer virus is a segment of code that performs malicious actions. It behaves much like that of a pathogen virus attacking animals and plants, replicating itself as it infects. It usually attaches itself to existing programs and uses that program's access into the targeted computer to carry out its code. Most viruses today get into a computer system with the assistance of the end user when opening an infected e-mail or some other trivial action. Damage can range from erasing entire hard drives to chewing up your 3GB ADSL bandwidth in a matter of minutes. Two types exist: a boot virus which infects operating system files, and a macro virus which infects word processors, spreadsheets and database applications.
Worms on the other hand, named after the novel "The shockwave rider" by John Brunner, replicate themselves without the need for other programs. Worms can replicate themselves until all available resources are used. This includes hard drive space, network/ADSL and dial-up bandwidth, through to computer memory. Worms can be delivered through conventional means and also on HTML enabled browsers, spreading themselves on non-protected websites.
Trojan horses are software programs that hide their true function and only start their programmed behavior when activated. This type of code is usually disguised as help programs and software, such as the readme.exe files often found on shareware and freeware packages.
Backdoor/Trap Door: This is software code that installs a backdoor in a system which then allows an attacker easy access to a computer system. One of the greatest concerns are the polymorphism threats which change their shape and are not detectable by techniques that use a preconfigured signature. The end result is that this code can eludes anti-virus software programs or make it very challenging indeed.
The last virus type, which probably frustrates more users and takes up more time and money than all other viruses combined, are virus hoaxes. Users, with all the good intentions in the world, send out warnings of fictitious virus threats which then results in network overload and a lot of wasted time and energy in chasing one's own tail.
So next time your computer seems to slow down, takes up too much of your ADSL bandwidth, or just starts losing data, check your anti-virus, anti-spyware and privacy updates.
What, you don't have these? No wonder your computer is vulnerable. Call Telkom business today for these and more security products that will suit your needs and save you money.
