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(Lecture - 10) Software Piracy and Viruses... Brief Introduction

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10 views23 pages

(Lecture - 10) Software Piracy and Viruses... Brief Introduction

Uploaded by

N. W. Flannel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Piracy & Viruses

FA I S A L A H M E D S I D D I Q U I

C O N TA C T
[email protected]

L EC T U R E # 8

B E S - 1 0 1 I n t r o d u c t i o n To C o m p u t e r
Software Piracy
2

 Software piracy is the illegal copying, distribution, or use of software.


 Software piracy causes significant lost revenue for publishers, which in turn
results in higher prices for the consumer.
 Most software programs purchased are licensed for use by just one user or at
just one computer site. Moreover, when someone buys software, he or she is
known as a “licensed user” rather than as an owner of the software. As a
licensed user, an individual is permitted to make copies of the software
program for back-up purposes only. It is a violation of copyright laws in North
America, in particular, to freely distribute software copies.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Software Piracy
3

 Types of software piracy include:


 Softlifting: Borrowing and installing a copy of a software application
from a colleague.
 Client-server Overuse: Installing more copies of the software than
you have licenses for.
 Hard-disk loading: Installing and selling unauthorized copies of
software on refurbished or new computers.
 Counterfeiting: Duplicating and selling copyrighted programs.
 Online piracy: Typically involves downloading illegal software from
peer-to-peer network, Internet auction or blog. (In the past, the only place
to download software was from a bulletin board system and these were
limited to local areas because of long distance charges while online.)

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Computer Viruses
4

 A computer virus is a type of malicious software program


("malware") that, when executed, replicates itself by modifying
other computer programs and inserting its own code. Infected
computer programs can include, as well, data files, or the "boot"
sector of the hard drive. When this replication succeeds, the
affected areas are then said to be "infected" with a computer
virus.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Computer Viruses
5

 Computer viruses currently cause billions of dollars' worth of economic


damage each year, due to causing system failure, wasting computer resources,
corrupting data, increasing maintenance costs, etc. In response, free, open-
source antivirus tools have been developed.

 The term "virus" is also commonly, but erroneously, used to refer to other
types of malware. "Malware" encompasses computer viruses along with many
other forms of malicious software, such as computer
"worms", ransomware, trojan horses, keyloggers, rootkits, spyware , adware,
malicious Browser Helper Object (BHOs) and other malicious software.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Computer Viruses
6

 Motives for creating viruses can include seeking profit e.g., with ransom-
ware), desire to send a political message, personal amusement, to demonstrate
that a vulnerability exists in software, for sabotage and denial of service, or
simply because they wish to explore cybersecurity issues, artificial
life and evolutionary algorithms

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
7

 Following are the seven most common computer viruses.

 Boot Sector Virus:


From a user perspective, boot sector viruses are some of the most dangerous.
Because they infect the master boot record, they are notoriously difficult to
remove, often requiring a full system format. This is especially true if the virus
has encrypted the boot sector or excessively damaged the code.
They typically spread via removable media. They reached a peak in the 1990s
when floppy disks were the norm, but you can still find them on USB drives and
in email attachments. Luckily, improvements in BIOS architecture have reduced
their prevalence in the last few years.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
8

 Direct Action Virus:


 A direct action virus is one of the two main types of file infector viruses (the
other being a resident virus). The virus is considered “non-resident”; it doesn’t
install itself or remain hidden in your computer’s memory.
 It works by attaching itself to a particular type of file (typically EXE or COM
files). When someone executes the file, it springs into life, looking for other
similar files in the directory for it to spread to.

On a positive note, the virus does not typically delete files nor hinder your
system’s performance. Aside from some files becoming inaccessible, it has a
minimal impact on a user and can be easily removed with an anti-virus program.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
9

 Resident Virus:
 Resident viruses are the other primary type of file infectors. Unlike
direct action viruses, they install themselves on a computer. It allows
them to work even when the original source of the infection has been
eradicated.
 Depending on the programming of the virus, they can be tricky to spot
and even trickier to remove. You can split resident viruses into two
areas; fast infectors and slow infectors. Fast infectors cause as much
damage as quickly as possible and are thus easier to spot; slow infectors
are harder to recognize because their symptoms develop slowly.
In a worst-case scenario, they can even attach themselves to your anti-
virus software, infecting every file the software scans. You often need a
unique tool – such as an operating system patch – for their total removal.
BES-101 Introduction To Computer
Types of Viruses
10

Multipartite Virus:
 A virus of this type may spread in multiple ways, and it may take different
actions on an infected computer depending on variables, such as the operating
system installed or the existence of certain files.
 They can simultaneously infect both the boot sector and executable files,
allowing them to act quickly and spread rapidly.
 The two-pronged attack makes them tough to remove. Even if you clean a
machine’s program files, if the virus remains in the boot sector, it will
immediately reproduce once you turn on the computer again.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
11

 Polymorphic Virus:
 Polymorphic viruses are one of the most difficult to detect for an anti-virus
program. It claims anti-virus firms need to “spend days or months creating the
detection routines needed to catch a single polymorphic”.
 But why are they so hard to protect against?
 The clue is in the name. Anti-virus software can only blacklist one variant of a
virus – but a polymorphic virus changes its signature (binary pattern) every
time it replicates. To an anti-virus program, it looks like an entirely different
piece of software, and can, therefore, elude the blacklist.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
12

 Overwrite Virus:
 To an end-user, an overwrite virus is one of the most frustrating, even if it’s
not particularly dangerous for your system as a whole.
 That’s because it will delete the contents of any file which it infects; the only
way to remove the virus is to delete the file, and consequently, lose its
contents. It can infect both standalone files and entire pieces of software.
 Overwrite viruses typically have low visibility and are spread via email,
making them hard to identify for an average PC user. They enjoyed a heyday
in the early 2000s with Windows 2000 and Windows NT, but you can still find
them in the wild.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Types of Viruses
13

 Spacefiller Virus:
 Also known as “Cavity Viruses”, space -filler viruses are more intelligent than
most of their counterparts. A typical modus operand for a virus is to simply
attach itself to a file, but space-fillers try to get into the empty space which can
sometimes be found within the file itself.
 This method allows it to infect a program without damaging the code or
increasing its size, thus enabling it to bypass the need for the stealthy anti-
detection techniques other viruses rely on.
 Luckily, this type of virus is relatively rare, though the growth of Windows
Portable Executable files is giving them a new lease of life.

BES-101 Introduction To Computer


Time Bomb

A time bomb is a virus


program that performs an
activity on a particular
date
Logical Bomb

A logical bomb is a
destructive program that
performs an activity when a
certain action has occurred.
Worm Virus
A worm is also a
destructive program that
fills a computer system with
self-replicating information,
clogging the system so that
its operations are slowed
down or stopped
Trojan Horse
Trojan Horse is a
destructive program. It
usually pretends as
computer games or
application software. If
executed, computer system
will be damaged.
Script Virus
Commonly found script
viruses are written using
the Visual Basic Scripting
edition (VBS) and the
JavaScript programming
languages
Macro Virus
A macro virus is associated
with application software
like word and excel. When
opening the infected
document, macro virus is
loaded into main memory
and destroys the data
Actions to prevent virus infection
Always update your anti-virus
software at least weekly.
Back up your important files and
ensure that they can be restored.
Change the computer's boot
sequence to always start the PC
from its hard drive
Actions to prevent virus infection
Don't share Drive C: without a
password and without read-
only restrictions.
Empty floppy drives of
diskettes before turning on
computers, especially laptops.
Actions to prevent virus infection
Forget opening unexpected e-mail
attachments, even if they're from
friends
Get trained on your computer's
anti-virus software and use it.
Have multiple backups of
important files. This lowers the
chance that all are infected.
Actions to prevent virus infection

Install security updates for your


operating system and programs as
soon as possible.
Jump at the chance to learn more
about your computer. This will
help you spot viruses.

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