Without a doubt, computer programs make life so much easier for the inhabitants of the digital age. They comprise the other half of digital technology. Without the software that serves as the soul of a computer, the latter would just be a useless electronic beeping machine.
Though software applications did actually revolutionize the way computers are used and the way people live in general, some computer programs are also very harmful. In fact, many of them are even created just for the purpose of destruction and sabotage.
The most notable form of malicious code is computer viruses. First coined by Frederick Cohen in 1983, the term is used to classify any kind of program that can create copies of itself as it spreads across computers in a network, or among digital storage devices.
As the virus does so, it would either erase data, or just perform annoying tasks that could range from displaying funny images, inserting unwanted words in a document, or would turn shut down the entire computer completely. When the internet became widespread by the mid-’90s, the computer viruses spread even further as it would not require the passing on of storage disks from one device to another to make copies of themselves.
How Malicious Programs Could Spread Rapidly
By just sending an email with an attachment containing a piece of the malicious code to anyone owning an email address, viruses could be spread already once the recipient opens the attachment. Once that happens, the destructive program embedded into the message will then be installed into the target computer and will begin the destruction it is programmed to do.
Today, because of the prevalence of e-commerce and digital currencies, computer criminals often utilize another form of a malicious program called spyware. The task of such a kind of hidden app is to obtain sensitive such as usernames and passwords that hackers might use to extract some classified information and sell them to the highest bidder.
Hackers may also use such information for personal gain. They could just have the objective of obtaining access to the bank accounts of other people so they can transfer huge amounts of money into their own financial reserves.
Why malicious codes spread quickly among computer networks is due to the fact that computer criminals would often disguise them as something useful or entertaining. To establish a connection between them and their target computers, they would send links to their chosen victims that would entice people to click on those links so their malicious codes could be installed and penetrate through the system.
Using their copywriting skills, they would post captions like “Grab this once-in-a-lifetime chance to win $10,000 dollars. Sign up now to have access to this limited offer!” Hackers may also send the victims an installation link to a useful app or a computer game. Once the person clicks on the link, the exploiting process then begins.
Over the next hours or days, the hacker could already be obtaining personal information about the victim and the latter would not even realize it until it is too late. Such kind of wicked activities is taking place all over the digital universe every day. The fact that most people are so careless in dealing with cyber-criminals and online scammers makes the problem even worse.
How The Government And The Military Could Be Exposed To Digital Threats
Because the spreading of malicious programs is now easier than ever, it could pose a huge risk on the issuance of Government Furnished Equipment (GFE). For instance, if a sector of the armed forces of a certain country secures a contract for a certain digital equipment manufacturer, that company could be infiltrated by computer criminals where they might install pieces of malicious codes into the computer systems that will be manufactured by those companies.
The possibility of hackers infiltrating the digital defense systems of the most powerful countries is very real. In fact, there is a silent kind of war-waging that is happening right at these moments – cyber-warriors are relentlessly employing all sorts of digital tactics to break into computer systems controlled by powerful people who have the access codes that could launch weapons of mass destruction into the air and kill millions of people in an instant.
Of course, those powerful nations are also employing their own cyber-warriors to protect their defense systems from unwanted intrusions. So far, there has not been well-documented evidence of a major hacking incident that actually triggered a nuclear missile launch that could potentially harm a great number of lives.
Another major factor that led to the speedy spreading of malicious codes is due to travel and tourism. Whenever people visit other places, they are very likely to connect their phones and mobile computers to wireless network hotspots in restaurants and hotels.
Once they do so, they are actually spreading information about themselves unknowingly. While hackers might not be always present to exploit the data they are giving, they could be making themselves victims to commercial exploitation that some legitimate businesses are secretly doing.
Malicious programs are literally crawling the digital world tirelessly each and every second. If people are not vigilant enough, they could become victims of all kinds of online scams and crimes that are happening at all times.
To combat this, awareness drills and media campaigns that can make people more educated about the matter should be regularly conducted. It is the best means by which digital crimes could be diminished since they would be very hard to eliminate as long as people do not stop using digital technology.
