It managed this feat by replaying the plant's protection system values in the control room while the attack was happening. This worm reportedly destroyed roughly a fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges by causing them to spin out of control by increasing the pressure on the spinning centrifuges, while displaying that everything was under control. Worms spread from computer to computer, but unlike a virus, it has the capability to travel without any human action.
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A computer worm called 'Stuxnet worm’ turned heads the world over recently when it attacked the nuclear facilities of Iran. Once they enter a system, they take advantage of file-transport or information-transport features in the system that allows them to travel unaided. In order to spread, worms either exploit the vulnerability of the target system or use some kind of social engineering method to trick users into executing them. Their existence in the system becomes apparent only when their uncontrolled replication consumes system resources, slowing or halting other tasks in the process. What is a Trojan horse A Trojan horse is a computer program that is hiding a virus or. Viruses and worms are malicious programs that self-replicate on computers or via computer networks without the user being aware each subsequent copy of such malicious programs is also able to self-replicate. Worms use parts of the operating system that are automatic and usually invisible to the user. Worms can also allow attackers to gain access to your computer remotely. Secondly, unlike viruses, worms do not alter files but reside in active memory and duplicate themselves. First, unlike viruses which need to cling on to files (host files) before they can diffuse themselves inside a computer, worms exist as separate entities or standalone software. But computer worms are different from computer viruses in certain aspects.
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That is why worms are often referred to as viruses also. Computer Worm Types Although there are no official statistics available, it is safe to say that there are well over a million computer worms in the world, each designed for a specific purpose. For example, it can also self-replicate itself and spread across networks. Furthermore, while viruses are usually bundled with legitimate files or programs, computer worms are standalone and don’t require a host file.
#What is worm virus software#
Definition: A computer worm is a malicious, self-replicating software program (popularly termed as 'malware') which affects the functions of software and hardware programs.ĭescription: It fits the description of a computer virus in many ways.