An Introduction to Malware

This chapter discusses malware, not just from a historical perspective, but also with an up-to-date review. Malware has changed over the years, and started as something much more basic than it is today. One consistent thing about malware is that it is a threat that is constantly changing. The chapter also looks at the methods used to detect, eradicate, and prevent such threats. Today there are many types of malware. Some of the basic categories of malware include the following: Virus, Worm, Logic bomb, Trojan/backdoor, Rootkit, Advanced persistent threat and Spyware. Crimeware kits offer someone with little or no programming experience the ability to create, customize, and distribute malware. Botnets have replaced the denial-of-service (DoS) attacks of the past. Advanced persistent threats (APTs) represent a different threat that is outside of the normal paradigm. Three common attack vectors include social engineering, faking it, and pretending through email.