What Are Trojan Horse Viruses

Cyber threats are often hard to spot, especially a Trojan horse virus. As one of the biggest threats to data, this type of malware is disguised as legitimate software and controlled by a malicious hacker to spy on you, steal information and gain access to your network. Learn how Trojan horses work and how to safeguard your organization’s data and critical information.

This malware is designed to trick users and take over their network. Trojan horses have various disguises, including email attachments, free games, applications or greeting cards. If a user unknowingly downloads it, the Trojan horse will deliver the malware a hacker needs to enter your network.

Trojan horse viruses must be activated by a user to work. Here are some of the most common ways a user can infect a device:

• Opening an infected email attachment or clicking a link leading to a malicious website through a phishing scam.
  
• Clicking on a fake antivirus program and unknowingly downloading a Trojan horse onto a device.
  
• Visiting a malicious website and clicking on an infected link.
  
• Downloading a program through an untrustworthy website.
  
• Connecting to a fake WiFi hotspot created by a hacker. Once the user connects, they will be redirected to fake websites containing browser exploits.

There are various types of Trojan horse viruses a user may encounter:

This Trojan malware allows hackers to remotely access and control devices in order to steal sensitive data.

With this Trojan horse, a device will be infected with a code designed to find a weakness within software.

These Trojans are designed to conceal or hide malware already infecting a device so it can cause maximum damage.

This Trojan specifically targets personal information containing bank account information.

These Trojans are made to execute DDoS attacks, where a device becomes disabled after a system floods its bandwidth.

These are Trojans programmed to download more malware once activated in a device.

These programs steal your login and passwords from IM applications, such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger. Once activated, the hacker controls chat sessions and sends Trojans to your contact list.

These Trojans locate email addresses stored on your device and allow hackers to send mass emails containing malware to your contacts.

This program alters data on your computer, so you no longer have access to it. The hacker will then ask you to pay money in order to regain access.

Since Trojan horse viruses are so good at hiding, a user may not even realize their device is infected until it’s too late. Here are some common signs that a device may be infected:

• Poor performance—such as constantly crashing or running extremely slow
• Frequent pop-ups offering products or fake antivirus scans
• Being redirected to unfamiliar sites when browsing the Internet
• Receiving a large amount of spam emails
• Taskbar has changed or disappeared
• Programs that you didn’t install have appeared in the task manager window
• The desktop has been modified—such as a different screen resolution

When it comes to safeguarding your business and its most critical data, malware prevention is key. Cox MalBlock offers company-wide cybersecurity that can be deployed within minutes. Contact Cox Business today and block cyber threats before they reach your network. Learn more about Cox Business MalBlock.