In these days, the word "computer virus" is used a ton, although oftentimes erroneously. If you want to shield yourself from them, it is very important that you understand exactly what they are and also what they do. It is also critical to recognize if you have malware, adware, spyware, or some other sort of system infection on your computer. Once you fully understand those things you can start to learn about how to get rid of viruses. Here is a list of the most frequently found sorts of infections along with a quick description:

Malware: Short for malicious software, malware is a computer program fashioned to secretly gain access to your PC. Malware is a generic term and is comprised of viruses, worms, trojan horses, spyware, adware, scareware, crimeware, in addition to other harmful software programs.

Viruses: In short, a computer virus is a program that can copy itself and infect a computer. The most common ways to receive viruses involve launching them in seemingly harmless email attachments, by CD, or thumb-drive. Though quite a few PC viruses can simply be bothersome, others could be very harmful, getting rid of data files, crashing your computer, and/or emailing itself to all your contacts, just to name a few.

Worms: Worms are usually similar to viruses with the exception that they reproduce and spread easier and quicker due to the fact that they need less (if any) human behavior to spread. They usually spread by means of the web rather than like a virus which mainly spreads via e-mail.

Wabbits: No, I am not referring to the Warner Bros. show. Computer wabbits are a scarce form of malware, and frequently the least ambitious. Unlike nearly all malware however, wabbits don't spread from computer to computer, but instead concentrate on destroying a single computer.

Spyware: The most important distinction between viruses and spyware is how you get it. You receive spyware from installing free software programs which also contain spyware. Just like the name suggests, spyware monitors your every activity on your PC and will be able to gain access to your private data, browsing history, and surfing habits. Spyware is additionally known to modify computer settings which in turn can result in different home pages, sluggish connection speeds, and loss of internet connection. Spyware does not reproduce and spread itself like viruses do.

Trojan Horses: Named after the Greek fable, trojans are comparable to spyware, where the user installs the application unknowingly when they download a valuable program. A trojan horse, once downloaded, can download and install more spyware, adware, and many others.

Adware: Otherwise known as advertising-supported software, when installed, adware can automatically play, show, or install ads on your computer. The object of adware is to earn revenue for its creator. Despite the fact that it's really frustrating, adware by itself, is usually harmless.

Keyloggers: Logs your key strokes, in most cases to figure out financial data and/or passwords.

URL Injector: This particular program automatically replaces certain Urls you type into your web browser with an affiliate URL to the same exact website so the author of the program will get a commission on lots of things you pay for on the web.

Dialers: This program utilizes your PC's modem to dial commonly premium-rate telephone numbers.