Beware the Trojan Horse!

Among the various types of computer repair Los Angeles consumers need help with the most are problems caused by malware infections. A Trojan Horse is a common form of malware that ordinary users encounter during regular internet surfing. Unfortunately, regular computer users often do not understand this particular form of malware, and unwittingly invite it onto their hard drives.

What Is Trojan Horse Malware?

A Trojan Horse, often simply called a Trojan, is a malicious piece of code that doesn’t replicate itself. When the code is executed, it can take actions that were designed by the malware creator. It’s necessary for the computer user to install and activate the code, so the malware creators go out of their way to make it appear familiar or useful.

The name comes from the story of the Fall of Troy. Greek soldiers hid inside inside a giant wooden horse to lure the unsuspecting Trojans into bringing them inside the walls of the city of Troy. The hidden soldiers jumped out of the statue under the cover of night and let their compatriots into the fortress, and they destroyed the city.

What Can a Trojan Do to Your Computer?

Trojan malware acts like a backdoor to your files, rather like the legendary Trojan Horse did. The malware can allow access to your computer to an outside party without your authorization. The computer coding that runs the Trojan is not easily detectable on your hard drive. The most common symptom of a Trojan infection is a general slowdown of all computer processes. That’s because they make greater demands on your CPU or network.

Some of the things that Trojans can do:

• Delete data
• Block data
• Modify data
• Copy data
• Disrupting performance
• Interfere with network connections

It is important to be careful when you surf the internet. Trojan Horse malware can capture bank account information, inflict a denial of service attack on a target website, or be ordered to download other malware. Some are designed to look like  fake anti-virus programs. The most insidious can lock up your computer until you pay a ransom to the hacker who originated the Trojan.

Trojan malware is delivered in methods that seem innocent to internet users. Favorite attack methods are clickable ads, innocuous sounding emails, and hyperlinks placed in comments on blogs.

The overwhelming majority of malware is written for Windows-based computers. That’s because Windows is used on almost 90 percent of all the desktop computers in the world. That means Apple computer users are not used to dealing with computer viruses. However, Apple platforms are not immune to the dangers of Trojan horse malware programs, so everyone should be cautious when surfing the internet.

Preventive Actions

Careful computer users can defend their devices from Trojans by installing effective anti-malware software. A well-designed program will detect and prevent possible Trojan attacks on your computer and other devices. Beyond that, you should be cautious about responding to advertising and clicking on  hyperlinks, no matter how innocuous they look. The best protection from Trojans is always prevention.