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Crouching Trojan, Hidden Malware
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by:
Joel Walsh
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Trojans are not just more dangerous than
computer viruses, they're stealthier, too. Find out where they hide.
Minions of an evil master lurk in your hard drive, crouching in your
system registry, ready to pounce.
What Is a Trojan?
The word "Trojan" is a mystery to most people, even many who think they
know its true meaning. If more people really understood what Trojans
are and the risk they pose, there would be fewer Trojans, since fewer
people would ever leave their machines vulnerable to them.
A Trojan is malware. Malware is a special kind of software, like
spyware, adware, and viruses that no one wants. Yet a Trojan is more
dangerous than any other kind of malware. Unlike those other types of
malware, Trojans are not mindless flunkies hurled at your computer by
their masters. A Trojan is a master that first craftily infiltrates
your PC, then unleashes its malware henchman.
What Trojans Do
• Some Trojans may install worms, which are programs that use
your computer and internet connection to send out armies of server
requests in the hope of shutting a particular website down, or to
spread viruses or worms to other computers.
• Other Trojans are thieves, out to steal your computer's
processing power and turn it over to their hacker masters, often by
setting up a backdoor, a hidden internet connection that allows for
outside manipulation of your machine.
• Some thieving Trojans are fraudsters that may go after your
financial information by installing keyloggers that record what you
type--especially passwords and important banking numbers.
How Do Trojans Hide?
No one thinks they have a Trojan on their computer until it is too
late. That's because they do such a good job of blending in.
• Trojans come disguised in innocuous file names, often
pretending to be a helper application to software or an essential
operating system component.
• Trojans try to avoid calling attention to themselves, and so
will often only interfere a little, if at all, with your computer's
performance, choosing instead to do their dirty work while your machine
is idle. Computers left on and connected to the internet while their
owners are asleep or at work or school are favorite targets.
How Do You Remove Trojans?
Removing Trojans can be a can of worms. Here's why you need to proceed
with caution:
• Since Trojans can disguise themselves as software your
computer actually needs, you could accidentally delete a vital program
or system registry entry. In the worst case scenario, you won't be able
to restart your computer.
• Many Trojans are trained for survival. When you try to
removal them manually, they may simply copy themselves to another
directory.
Intimidated? You don't have to be. Rather than trying to defuse a
Trojan yourself, why not call in the bomb squad? Good anti-spyware and
antivirus software will fight Trojans, too. Just make sure to look for
a program that specifically says it fights Trojans. After all, this is
no job for amateurs.
About the author:
Joel Walsh writes for http://www.spyware-refuge.comabout
spyware removal: http://www.spyware-refuge.com/spyware-removal.html?spyware
removal [Publish this article on your website! Requirement: live link
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