Page 85 - Computer - 10(A&B)

Email attachments

Emails are another common source for spreading malware. Attachments in the mail or links to files often take
the user to a site which can automatically copy malware to the computer or copies infected files to a system.
You can keep your computer safe from malware by keeping your computer security tools up to date with the
latest updates and antivirus tools, and staying informed about recent threats.

Indication of Malware Infection

Different types of malware cause damage to your computer in different ways. Some of the indications of malware
infection are given below.
v A program takes longer than usual time to load and memory-intensive operations take a lot of time to start.

v A hard disk drive shows no space although there is enough space.
v The file formats change on their own when you try to access them.
v New files keep appearing on the computer, but you do not know where they come from.
v The files on the computer start getting deleted on their own.

v Files have strange names you do not recognise.
v The computer unexpectedly starts rebooting.
v Inability to access the hard drive or disk drives.
v The computer frequently stops responding.
v Installed memory becomes less without any reason.

v Unexplained messages appear on the screen.
v An entire disk or drive is erased.

What Malware Can Do

Malware in the form of viruses, trojans, spyware, or adware can harm your computer and productivity in many
ways. Some of the ways malware causes harm to our computers are:
v It steals your personal information like personal data, and financial data.

v It floods your browser with pop-up advertising, thereby slowing down your network connection and
reducing your productivity.
v It spams your inbox with advertising email, leading to clutter and wastage of storage.
v It slows down or crashes your computer.

v It can destroy your files and disks.
v It allows hackers to get hold of your computer.

v It can install other malware onto your computer.

What Malware Cannot Do

Some things that malware cannot do are:
v It cannot harm read only media like CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs.

v It cannot cause damage to the hardware of your computer system as these devices are not related to software.
v It does not cause your computer system to stop functioning as it needs the computer system to cause further
damage.

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