Malware affects us all
The
increasing number of Internet users worldwide creates an equal (or larger)
number of opportunities for cyber criminals to take advantage of our systems.
As we become more dependent on the online environment, we can clearly see a
massive growth in malware and cyber-criminal activities all across the globe.
With
so many ways out there to access and exploit vulnerable systems, we need to
make sure we’re able to recognize a malware infection in order to prevent and
defend our systems.
Because it is a battle and you need to be ready.
This
article will show you what the main symptoms of a malware infected system are.
You’ll also learn to correctly evaluate the risk and know where to look for a
solution. Let’s get to it!
Symptoms of a malware infection
1. SLOWDOWN
Does
it take longer than normal for your operating system to boot up?
Are
you waiting too long for some of your programs to start?
It
is a known fact that malware has the tendency to slow down your operating system,
your Internet speed or the speed of your applications.
If
you notice something like this and you’re not using any resource-heavy program
or application, check for other causes first. It may be a lack of RAM memory, a
fragmented system, a lack of space on your hard drive or maybe a hardware issue
affecting your drive. These 10 tips will come in handy when evaluating such
problems.
If
you have already thoroughly verified these possible causes and all seems fine,
you can start considering a potential malware infection.
2. POP-UPS
One
of the most annoying signs of malware is represented by the unwanted pop-up
windows. Unexpected pop-ups which appear on the system are a typical sign of a
spyware infection.
In
this particular case, the main issue is created not only by the numerous pop-up
windows that affect your Internet navigation, but also because it is quite
difficult to remove them from the system.
Pop-ups
are not only annoying, but they usually come bundled with other concealed
malware threats, and which could be far more destructive for our systems.
To
avoid spyware and its impact on our systems, keep in mind a few security
practices:
·
don’t
click any suspicious pop-up windows
·
don’t
answer unsolicited emails/messages
·
be
careful when downloading free applications
3. CRASHES
If
your programs or your system crash constantly or the infamous BSOD (Blue Screen
of Death) appears regularly, it’s a clear warning that your system is not
working properly and you should look into it.
There
are two things that can cause this type of issues:
·
You
could be dealing with a technical issue caused by a potential incompatibility
between your software and/or hardware
·
Or
it may be a malware issue.
If
you suspect a technical issue, multiple software problems may lead to this.
Are
you running various programs which may conflict with each other? Are there any
orphan registry keys which have not been removed that could down and eventually
crash your system?
If
you are checking for malware, simply run a complete scan on the system with a
good antivirus product. It is important to have a reliable security solution on
your system, which should include real-time scanning, automatic update and a
firewall.
4. SUSPICIOUS HARD DRIVE ACTIVITY
Another
warning sign of a potential malware infection on your system is the hard
drive activity.
If
you notice that your disk continues to exhibit excessive activity even
when you don’t use it and there is no program or download running at that
moment, this could be the right time to check your system for malware.
We
have to mention that another possible cause for the abnormal hard disk activity
could be a hardware failure of the disk. You should also take this into
consideration.
5. RUNNING OUT OF HARD
DRIVE SPACE
Regarding
the hard drive, you also need to check if your physical storage space has been
increasing lately or if some of your files disappeared or changed their names.
This
is another sign of malware activity, since there are numerous types of
malicious software which use various methods to fill up all the available space
in the hard drive and cause it to crash.
6. UNUSUALLY HIGH NETWORK ACTIVITY
There
are cases where the user is not connected to the Internet through his browser,
and there is no program that may connect to online servers to download or
upload any data, but high network activity can still be observed.
First
of all, we need to check the following:
·
Is
there any Windows update at that moment?
·
Is
there any program or application that’s downloading or uploading any data?
·
Is
there any update for a certain app running at that moment?
·
Is
there a large download that you started and forgot about, which may still be
running in the background?
If
the answer to all these questions is No, then maybe you should check where all that traffic is going.
·
To monitor your network, you can use one of the following
programs: Glass Wire, Little Snitch or Wireshark.
·
To check for a malware infection, use a good antivirus product to check
your system.
·
If
you suspect that your computer has been infected by a dangerous financial malware, you need a specialized
security suite designed to address these type of threats.
7. NEW BROWSER HOMEPAGE,
NEW TOOLBARS and/or UNWANTED WEBSITES ACCESSED WITHOUT YOUR INPUT
Have
you noticed that your home page has been changed and you don’t remember doing
it yourself?
Did
a new toolbar pop out of nowhere and landed at top of your web browser?
Have
you tried to access your favorite blog, but you were redirected to a different
address?
This
usually happens when you visit a website and you accidentally click a link or a
pop-up window. This triggers unwanted software to download and install on your
device. Its effects are not only annoying, but also malicious.
Run
a complete scan with your security solution as soon as possible. Because these
type of threats don’t go away easily. Make sure you run additional scans with
specialized software, such as anti-spyware programs as the ones mentioned
above.
8. UNUSUAL MESSAGES OR
PROGRAMS THAT START AUTOMATICALLY
A
few warning signs should really make you suspicious. If any of these happen,
pay closer attention and try finding the cause:
·
if,
all of a sudden, you see programs opening and closing automatically
·
your
Windows operating system shutting down without reason
·
if
you notice strange windows in the booting process
·
or
if Windows informs you that you’ve lost access to some of your drives.
Though
the root cause may be a technical one, it could also be a sign that malware has
compromised your system. If this is the case and you lost access to some
important areas of your operating system, you need to prepare for the worst.
These are the cases when a complete wipe and reinstall of the operating system
is taken into consideration.
9. YOUR SECURITY SOLUTION
IS DISABLED
If
you’re antivirus solution doesn’t seem to work anymore or if the Update module
seems to be disabled, then check to see what happened immediately!
You
should know that some types of malware are especially designed to disable
security solutions, leaving you without any defense. If you already tried to
reboot your computer, close and open the security solution and all your
troubleshooting efforts were useless, you could consider the malware infection
scenario.
This
is especially the case since traditional antivirus solutions are sometimes
unable to block and remove advanced malware, such as ransom ware or financial
malware. There are a couple of strong reasons why this is happening, and you
should read about them, so you can enhance your protection by adding multiple
layers.
10. YOUR FRIENDS TELL YOUR
THAT THEY’RE GETTING STRANGE MESSAGES FROM YOU
Are
your friends telling you that they received suspicious emails from you or
instant messages from your social media account, which often include
attachments or links?
First
of all, you need to verify whether those emails or messages were sent from one
of your accounts (so check your Sent Items folder in your email/social media
account). If there’s nothing there, those messages could have been delivered
from an application which is out of your control.
If
you discover the messages were sent from one of your accounts, take these
steps:
·
Make sure you logged out from all your
accounts. We access the
same accounts on our work computers, on our home laptops and of course, on our
mobile devices. Since we log in to our favorite online accounts on so many
devices, it can happen that sometimes we forget to log out. Therefore, always
make sure to log out from your online accounts on all devices.
·
Set strong passwords for your accounts. Don’t use the same password for all your
accounts! Even if you are hacked, having different passwords for each account
will help you limit a potential loss. Make a habit of managing your passwords
safely.
·
Use two-factor authentication. This option can significantly increase
your control over your accounts’ security. Using two-factor authentication
means that, besides entering your credentials, you will also need to enter a
code sent to your phone.
Knowledge is our best
weapon
Knowing
how malicious software behaves on a regular system may just prove to be the key
element between staying safe and having your system wrecked or your online
identity stolen.
Since
we live in a connected and complex environment, online security doesn’t end
with installing a series of security programs and forgetting about them. It’s
essential that we also understand how malware behaves on the system, so we can
mitigate its impact.
In
the end, it is our knowledge of malware tools and methods that keeps us safe,
because it is far easier to prevent a threat from becoming reality than to take
actions against it when it’s already too late.
