Tech Tip Of The Day -- Malware vs Virus Difference

While dealing with a computer you might have heard of the following words - Malware vs Virus. Here is a definition of what the two are. The word malware is malicious software that describes a piece of code designed to infect your computer or mobile devices. To make it do things that are not wanted, such as spam mass email, stealing password. Trojans, worms and rootkits are different types of malware. A virus on the other hand is the malicious code that spreads by infecting files.

Viruses have become rare within the computer world. Hackers have went to the trend of sending out malware that is disguised reputable programs or files that are actually stealing information in the background. 

To help guard yourself against malware (malicious content) do not click on any ad links within websites, or click on links in emails from those that are unknown. I would suggest deleting these emails from people you do not know that are asking for something. Better safe than sorry when it comes to protecting your computer and your sensitive information. 

You can also find various antivirus and malware protection software to help guard your computer. Malwarebytes is a free tool that can be used to scan your computer. 

At the first sign of your computer acting different I would suggest you run a virus scan or malware scan to see if anything is found. Malwarebytes is free and has a partial or full scan that can be run and will detect any defective files or registry entries.