Viruses are malicious programs that damage the computer system by infecting important files and documents of the user. However, contrary to popular guess, the virus is not capable of causing physical damage to the computer and can, at most, lead to data loss.
Impact of viruses
A virus is a malicious application that is written with the aim of causing certain harm to the software component of a computer. A distinctive feature of viruses is their ability to create automatic copies of themselves and be embedded in the written program code of other applications running on the computer.
Viruses are written by cybercriminals with the intention of violating the data structure on target computers or servers. Malicious applications can vary in purpose, structure, and activity in the user's operating system. There are viruses that can be invisible to the computer user. However, there are programs that can render the entire operating system unusable.
Stages of the virus
The activity of computer viruses has several stages. At the first (latent) stage, the virus can be in the system, but it will not take any action to destroy files. Latent viruses can be invisible to the user and can be easily detected by antivirus software.
The virus can only violate the software component, the problem of which in most cases is solved by reinstalling the operating system.
Malicious applications that are in the incubation stage begin to spread a piece of code that affects the software component of the computer. Some viruses send confidential information to attackers or simply send spam. During its operation, the virus begins to consume system resources, which can also be noticeable to the user.
The active stage of the malicious program is in the continuation of sending code and destructive actions. At this stage, the deletion of important files begins, system services disappear and the functioning of the network is disrupted. In this case, the computer processor, like the rest of the components, remain intact.
Types of viruses
By the type of work, viruses are distinguished boot (launched together with the operating system), file (activated when certain programs or files are launched), file-boot, network (distributed on the Internet and through network protocols) and documentary (infect only important documents on the user's computer) …
Viruses can use the Internet channel to connect and send the data required by the program.
Contrary to popular belief, viruses are not capable of affecting the operation of the computer's hardware, including the processor - components cannot break under the influence of the software component of the device.
Viruses do not work when the computer is off, since they are also programs that cannot be executed without the software environment, which is the operating system.
