Computer viruses often spread by means of what?
Computers and Technology · Middle School · Mon Jan 18 2021
Answered on
Computer viruses often spread through several means, including:
1. Email attachments: Viruses can be hidden within attachments. When a user opens or downloads the attachment, the virus can execute and infect the system.
2. Internet downloads: Viruses can be embedded in files or software downloaded from the internet, including freeware, shareware, or files shared through peer-to-peer (P2P) networks.
3. Removable media: USB drives, external hard drives, CDs, and DVDs that contain a virus can spread the infection when they are connected to or inserted in other computers.
4. Social engineering: Tricks or phishing techniques are used to encourage users to click on infected links or download malicious files from seemingly trustworthy sources.
5. Network connections: Viruses can spread over local area networks (LAN) or through the internet if a computer is part of a network and file-sharing is enabled.
6. Exploiting software vulnerabilities: Some viruses take advantage of security holes in software or operating systems to infect a machine without any user action.