Sneak Attack! Viruses Are Not Just for People

The Bournewood IT Department is keenly aware of the many threats to our computer system's security-it's a moving target that changes every day as new viruses or "malware" emerge and create a real and serious risk to the safety and integrity of our system and more importantly to the protected health information we maintain. Below are a few excerpts from an article about these computer threats by Sara Angeles of the Business News Daily.

 

We'll start with the basics: Malware.

 

 

How does malware find its way into your computer? Two examples are spearphishing and simply attacking normal Web browsing activities.

 

 

Computer users can also unwittingly download malware when visiting trustworthy or seemingly trustworthy websites.

 

 

At Bournewood, we are constantly monitoring our system with antivirus programs to keep our information and our computer infrastructure safe. But antivirus software doesn't detect all malware and the problem is growing. And as the new generations of malware evolve, it becomes more difficult to stop it.

 

Here are a few things to be aware of to prevent malware from infecting your computer:

 

Online ads. Nowadays simply surfing the Web can infect your computer. Most malware comes from legitimate websites because of poor passwords or software flaws. For example, malvertisements - online ads with malicious code hidden inside them - are popular methods to spread malware. Without even knowing it, your computer is infected upon visiting the website, following the advertisement display, says Bari Abdul, head of consumer business, Check Point Software Technologies

 

Social media. More than three-quarters of all malware and computer viruses are entering computers via social media. People inherently trust social media because the messages are received from friends and recognizable brands, which makes it the perfect avenue to exploit an unsuspecting individual. Social is now the world's largest attack surface and medium combined, says James C. Foster, CEO and co-founder, ZeroFOX

 

Mobile malware. Benjamin Caudill, co-founder, Rhino Security Labs says that cybercriminals have developed an app for Android phones, which they posted on Google Play labeled as a utility app. What it really did, however, was load up the phone's memory with malware. The next time that phone was connected to a computer, the malware would activate and infect the computer.