Do you know what computer worms are? These harmful apps have the potential to compromise your data and wreck chaos on your computer system. Computer worms pose a severe danger to cybersecurity. They are computer viruses that harm files and software, infect machines, and spread over networks. Early in the 1980s, the first computer worm was developed, and since then, they have advanced to become more complex and difficult to identify.

The word “worm” might conjure up a variety of images, including chewy candy, invertebrate animals, or viruses in computer systems. Computer worms are weak and use deceitful methods to infect hosts. They demonstrate a harmful tendency and demand an additional investigation. Computer worms continue to be a major concern for people and organisations despite advances in cybersecurity technology.

Computer worms will be thoroughly discussed in this blog, along with their kinds, examples, and what you can do to safeguard yourself from them.

History Of Computer Worms

The Worm, sometimes known as the Morris Worm, had an effect in the real world in 1988. It was a Robert Morris creation that took advantage of holes in the email protocol. The objective was to increase awareness and draw attention to network flaws.

6,000 out of 60,000 machines linked to the internet were infected by the Morris worm in 24 hours, which propagated more quickly than anticipated. The malware replicated due to a programming error, rendering affected machines useless.

The worm succeeded in its objective of drawing media attention and revealing network flaws, but it also seriously damaged the economy. The damage amounted to $10 million, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

What Are Computer Worms?

Computer worms are a type of malware that may propagate between machines without human activity. It frequently does it via a network connection. Despite having similarities to Trojan horse malware, it needs different ways of dissemination.

Trojans use trickery and social engineering techniques to convince people to carry out their execution. One such strategy entails posing as authorised software. Because they frequently rely on social engineering techniques to penetrate systems, worms are regarded as a form of Trojan.

 

Characteristics Of Computer Worms

Computer worms are a type of malicious software that can replicate itself and spread via networks with no user interaction. Computer worms typically have the following traits:

• • Without user intervention, computer worms are able to replicate themselves and propagate to other systems.

• • By exploiting network software flaws or using social engineering techniques to trick users into installing and running the worm, worms can propagate over computer networks.

• • Worms have a tendency to use up a lot of storage and bandwidth, which could cause the system to slow down or crash.

• • Worms are capable of carrying out damaging deeds including file deletion, data theft, and DDoS attacks.

• • Some worms can hide themselves inside a system that has been infected, making safety precautions and anti-virus software difficult to detect.

• • Even after the original infection has been eliminated, worms may still attempt to stay in the compromised system and continue their harmful activities.

Examples Of Computer Worms

Even after the original infection has been eliminated, worms may still attempt to stay in the compromised system and continue their harmful activities.

• • One of the first computer worms to propagate via the Internet, the Morris Worm, also known as the Internet Worm, attracted media attention.

• • The worm known as Blaster, also known as MSBlast, Lovesan, and Lovsan, preyed on Windows XP and Windows 2000-powered PCs.

• • Windows flaws were exploited by the Conficker worm, also known as Downup, Downadup, and Kido, to proliferate and infect millions of machines across more than a hundred nations.

• • The ILOVEYOU worm infected millions of devices, causing billions of dollars in damages while seriously harming computer systems all around the world.

• • The email worm Mydoom, which interfered with email communication by disseminating unwelcome messages among computer systems, was identified as having the fastest rate of propagation in 2004.

How Do Computer Worms Spread?

Phishing emails contain malicious attachments or URLs that could infect visitors with worms. These emails should be avoided since they might seem genuine.

• • Spear-phishing attempts, also known as targeted phishing, have the potential to spread dangerous malware like ransomware crypto viruses.

• • Through shared access, worms are able to replicate themselves throughout different networks.

• • Some worms can access a system by taking advantage of software flaws.

• • P2P file networks have the capacity to spread malicious software like worms.

• • Social networks like MySpace have been affected by particular kinds of worms.

• • Text messages and messaging applications like Internet Relay Chat (IRC) can spread malware, including worms.

• • Worm infections can affect USB memory sticks and external hard drives, among other external storage devices.

How Do Computer Worms Function?

A computer worm has the potential to carry out a variety of damaging operations once it has breached a computer’s defences.

• • Take up bandwidth.

• • Remove files.

• • Saturate networks.

• • Steal information.

• • Unlock a back door.

• • Eat up disk space.

Computer Worms vs. Viruses: What’s the Difference? 

Malware is destructive software that can damage networks and computers. Viruses and computer worms are two examples of malware. Computer worms are automatically spreading, self-replicating programmes that travel across networks and the internet. An attacker can gain access to a victim’s system without the victim’s knowledge by installing a backdoor.

Computer viruses can replicate themselves, but they can’t spread to other applications or systems without user intervention. Users’ clicks on malicious emails, downloads, files, and websites are what they rely on. Viruses, as opposed to worms, need to be manually run by a human before they can spread. When malicious software is activated, it runs in the background, slowing network performance and having the potential to lead to things like corruption of data or identity theft.

Classifications Of Computer Worms

Malicious computer worms come in a variety of forms.

Email worms

Email worms proliferate by sending out indiscriminate emails from a user’s contact list that contain a malicious executable file that, when opened, infects the recipient’s system. Email worms commonly use phishing and social engineering tricks to get individuals to open the attached file in order to succeed.

File-sharing worms

Peer-to-peer file-sharing networks can be used to spread file-sharing worms, which can replicate themselves in shared folders. Worm authors frequently disguise these malicious applications as media files.

File-sharing worms have a history of deliberately targeting industrial settings like sewage plants, water supply agencies, and electricity utilities.

Cryptoworms

Utilised by attackers in ransomware attacks, in which they demand payments from the victim as payment for a decryption key to unlock the files, crypto worms work by encrypting information stored on the victim’s machine.

Internet worms

Some computer worms frequently target heavily trafficked websites with weak protection. They have the ability to infect any machine that accesses the site if they are successful in doing so. Internet worms have the ability to spread themselves to other devices linked to the affected computer through public and private networks.

Instant messaging worms

In the same way that emails worms spread by links or attachments and infect the user’s contact list, instant messaging worms come via a quick chat on a messaging platform as opposed to an email.

The user may think about changing the messaging account password as a precautionary measure against further spread if the worm does not yet have the chance to replicate itself on the device.

Computer Worm Prevention

Be wary of any links or attachments you receive via email. If they come from an unknown sender, don’t open them. They might contain malware or be phishing scams. Before opening, do a virus check on the e-mail or file to make sure it is legitimate.

• • When online, it’s best to avoid clicking on pop-up advertising because they could include adware that might harm trustworthy websites and gadgets. An advertisement promising a prize or a virus on the system or device is an illustration of typical adware.

• • It is advised to use caution and to stay away from downloading files from unidentified sources when using peer-to-peer services. However, it is advised to use a VPN if torrenting is required.

• • It is advised to update the software frequently to get rid of any potential vulnerabilities. It’s also suggested to enable automatic updates if they are offered.

• • For router configuration in particular, it is advised to avoid using standard credentials and to regularly update passwords to avoid worm infection. For making stronger passwords, there is a password security test and instructions available.

• • To protect private information on devices and avoid loss in instances of malware outbreaks, it is advised to encrypt crucial files.

In A Nutshell

One of the more interesting categories of malicious software (or malware) is computer worms, in part because they don’t damage computers. Worms are nonetheless considered malware since any intrusion into a computer has the potential to cause it harm in the future. Because they replicate themselves, worms can be distinguished from computer viruses, which are the most well-known form of malware.

In a nutshell, they can spread to another person without the necessity for a human to physically spread them. In contrast to viruses, which want to damage every system they come into contact with, worms only have one goal: to infect as many computers as they can without compromising their functionality.