10 of the world’s most dangerous computer viruses
and how they work
It would be difficult to narrow the field to just ten of the world’s most dangerous computer viruses, as there are scores of them out there. But we’ll try. Here are ten of the most dangerous computer viruses, ranked in terms of the damage they can inflict:
1. ILOVEYOU
This virus, also known as the Love Bug, hit the Internet in May of 2000 and within ten days had caused an estimated $5.5 billion in damage worldwide. The virus was an email attachment that, once opened, would send itself out to everyone in the victim’s address book. The email appeared to be coming from a friend or acquaintance, with a simple message like “ILOVEYOU” or “I miss you.” But upon opening the attachment, the victim’s computer would be infected with the virus, which would then proceed to delete important files, send out more infected emails, and generally wreak havoc. The ILOVEYOU virus was particularly dangerous because it Was so widespread and because it struck at a time when many people were still relatively inexperienced with email attachments and computer viruses.
2. Melissa
Named after a stripper in Florida, the Melissa virus was another email-borne virus that hit the internet in 1999. Like the ILOVEYOU virus, it would replicate itself and send itself out to everyone in the victim’s address book. But Melissa had a few extra tricks up its sleeve. It would also disable certain antivirus software, making it even harder to detect and remove. And it would attach itself to Microsoft Word documents, which would then be corrupted when opened by the victim. The Melissa virus caused an estimated $80 million in damage and resulted in the arrest of its creator, David L. Smith.
3. Code Red
Code Red was a computer worm that hit the internet in 2001. It exploited a security flaw in Microsoft’s IIS web server software, and quickly spread itself to hundreds of thousands of computers around the world. Once it had infected a machine, it would then proceed to launch a denial of service attack against the White House website. Code Red was particularly notable for its speed and for the fact that it was able to infect even well-protected computers. It caused an estimated $2 billion in damage and was responsible for taking down many major websites, including Yahoo! and CNN.
4. Sasser
Sasser was a computer worm that hit the internet in 2004. Like Code Red, it exploited a security flaw in Microsoft’s IIS web server software. But unlike Code Red, Sasser didn’t launch denial of service attacks. Instead, it would simply disable the victim’s computer, making it unusable. Sasser was particularly notable for its speed and for the fact that it didn’t require any user interaction to spread itself. It caused an estimated $18 billion in damage and was responsible for taking down many major websites, including Yahoo! and CNN.
5. Mydoom
Mydoom was a computer worm that hit the internet in 2004. It was notable for being the then-fastest spreading email worm in history, and for being the first worm to use a keylogger to steal victim’s confidential information. Mydoom would also launch denial of service attacks against websites that the victim visited. It caused an estimated $38 billion in damage and was responsible for taking down many major websites, including Yahoo! and CNN.
6. Conficker
Conficker was a computer worm that hit the internet in 2008. It was notable for its sophisticated malware that was able to disable security features on the victim’s computer and for its ability to spread itself through networks. Conficker caused an estimated $9.1 billion in damage and was responsible for taking down many major websites, including Yahoo! and CNN.
7. Stuxnet
Stuxnet was a computer worm that hit the internet in 2010. It was notable for being the first piece of malware that was specifically designed to target industrial control systems. Stuxnet was used to target the Iranian nuclear facility at Natanz, and caused an estimated $2 billion in damage.
8. Flame
Flame was a computer virus that hit the internet in 2012. It was notable for its sophisticated malware that was able to steal victim’s confidential information, including their passwords and documents. Flame also had the ability to spread itself through networks and to take control of other computers on the same network. It caused an estimated $300 million in damage.
9. Operation Aurora
Operation Aurora was a cyber attack that hit the internet in 2010. It was notable for its sophisticated malware that was used to steal victim’s confidential information, including their passwords and documents. Operation Aurora also had the ability to spread itself through networks and to take control of other computers on the same network. It is estimated that the attack cost Google $100 million.
10. Cryptolocker
Cryptolocker was a computer virus that hit the internet in 2013. It was notable for its use of encryption to lock the victim’s files and for its demand for a ransom to decrypt the files. Cryptolocker caused an estimated $3 billion in damage and was responsible for taking down many major websites, including Yahoo! and CNN..Resource
The dangers of using public Wi-Fi
There are plenty of reasons to love public Wi-Fi. It’s convenient, it’s usually free, and it’s readily available when you’re out and about. But there are also some serious dangers to using public Wi-Fi that you should be aware of.
One of the biggest dangers of using public Wi-Fi is that it’s often unsecured. This means that anyone within range of the network can access it, and they can view and intercept any data that’s being sent or received. This includes things like your passwords, credit card numbers, and other sensitive information.
Even if a public Wi-Fi network is password-protected, that doesn’t mean it’s completely secure. Hackers can sometimes gain access to these networks, and they can then view and intercept any data that’s being sent or received.
Another big danger of using public Wi-Fi is that you’re connecting to a network that you don’t know anything about. You don’t know who set it up, you don’t know who’s responsible for maintaining it, and you don’t know who else is using it. This means that there could be malware on the network that you’re unknowingly connecting to.
So what can you do to protect yourself when using public Wi-Fi? The best thing you can do is to use a VPN (virtual private network). A VPN encrypts all of the data that’s sent and received, which means that even if someone does intercept it, they won’t be able to read it.
There are plenty of other things you can do to keep yourself safe when using public Wi-Fi, but using a VPN is the best and simplest solution. So if you regularly use public Wi-Fi, make sure you’re using a VPN.
All material on this site was made with malwarezero.org as the authority reference. View Source.