There's nothing like talking to the IT guys to give your technical vocabulary a bit of a workout. Whether you're dealing with the aftermath of a security breach, or trying to understand how to help your staff identify and deal with malicious emails, it can help to know the correct terms relating to email and PC security.
Here are some key definitions to be familiar with:
Spam – a general term for unsolicited (and unwanted) emails, often sent in bulk to users. Spam is usually commercial in nature - trying to sell you something (granted not something you're likely to need or want), but not necessarily trying to rip you off. Emails containing phishing scams or malware are often disguised as spam, hence controlling the amount of spam that makes it to your inbox goes hand-in-hand with overall IT security.
Malware – or malicious software – an umbrella term to cover anything harmful to your device, it’s data and your personal information. This includes, viruses, worms, spyware, etc. It is often included in spam emails.
Phishing – are emails that attempt to gain your personal information. They often try to appear as legitimate entities, like Australia Post or Telstra and typically contain a link to a false webpage. Users are then often tricked into entering login details, bank details or asked to download malware.
Anti-spam email filtering – blocks the spam email from entering into your Inbox. It is typically re-directed to your Spam folder.
Anti-malware email filtering – blocks malware from being able to infect your device via the email. Generally works by preventing suspicious attachments, links and images from being able to be opened.
Types of malware:
Ransomware – data on a users device and network are encrypted, usually after the user has opened a malicious email attachment. Users are then presented with a ransom screen, usually containing details on an amount to be paid to decrypt their files. Cryptolocker and Cryptowall are key examples.
Viruses – are destructive software that attempt to spread throughout the programs and data on your device and other networked devices. They typically attempt to destroy the functions of your computer.
Spyware – is software that hides in your computer to collect personal information, like sign-in details and bank account credentials, and sent it to the spyware author to exploit.
Trojans – are software that create a 'back-door' into your device so it can be remotely controlled. Trojan-infected devices are often used to send spam emails in bulk to other users, to host malicious software and part of denial of service (DoS) attacks.
Image Credit: Mike Kniec on Flickr.
