What is a computer Worm?

A computer worm is a malicious programme, as the computer virus, which, however, distributs itself through computer networks to "higher resources, as a host application, network services or a user interaction. It is spreading, for example, by sending infected e-mails (independently by an SMTP engine or by e-mail program), IRC, peer-to-peer and instant messaging programs or through file shares. The only recently emerging mobile phone worms spread via Bluetooth and infected MMS. The worm term refers to the high spread of this malicious programs.

A worm can also the burden of other systems on the network such as e-mail servers, routers and firewalls.

According to an investigation, there is a 50 percent probability for a new PC with Windows XP, without updates on the Internet within twelve minutes to be infected with malicious programs (viruses, worms ...).

Difference between virus and worm

Computer viruses and Computer worms spread both in computers, but they have various methods of the infection. A worm requires networks, etc., as mentioned above, but a virus, however infects a file by sending a portion of the file (it integrates). For these infectable files are no exceptions. Each file can be infected. Worms try in different ways, via networks etc. to infect systems.

There are also mixed forms from worms, viruses and Trojans (Trojanworms, Trojanviruses ...).

Protection

For the disinfection and for the protection you need an antivirus program. These can delete and block worms, viruses and Trojans. 

The cleaning with an anti-virus software is at a heavily infected systems not 100% possible. Sometimes the computer is compromised and you have to reinstall the system.
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