Computer virus: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 21:54, 13 October 2005

Revision as of 01:50, 14 October 2005

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While viruses can be intentionally destructive (for example, by destroying data), many other viruses are fairly benign or merely annoying. Some viruses have a delayed payload, which is sometimes called a ''bomb''. For example, a virus might display a message on a specific day or wait until it has infected a certain number of hosts. A ''time bomb'' occurs during a particular date or time, and a ''logic bomb'' occurs when the user of a computer takes an action that triggers the bomb. However, the predominant negative effect of viruses is their uncontrolled self-reproduction, which wastes or overwhelms computer resources.

Today ([[as of [[2005]]), viruses are somewhat less common than network-borne worms, due to the popularity of the [[Internet]]. [[Anti-virus software]], originally designed to protect computers from viruses, has in turn expanded to cover worms and other threats such as [[spyware]].

== Definition ==