1. Submitted To:
Prof. Dr. Amita Verma
TOPIC: COMPUTER VIRUS
Submitted By:
Vaibhav Rattan
B.A. LL.B. Section-C
Semester 10 Roll No.:
170/19
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LAWS
2. Generally
computer
malicious
speaking, a
virus is a type of
software, or
malware, that spreads between
computers and causes damage
to data
Computer
and software.
viruses aim to
disrupt systems, cause major
operational issues, and result
in data loss and leakage. For
instance, you could receive an
email with
attachment,
unknowingly,
a malicious
open
and
the file
then the
on your
computer virus runs
computer.
3. What is a computer virus?
Section 43 of the Information Technology Act,
2000 defines “Computer Virus” as any computer
instruction, information, data or programme that
destroys, damages, degrades or adversely
affects the performance of a computer resource
or attaches itself to another computer resource
and operates when a programme, data or
instruction is executed or some other event
takes place in that computer resource.
4. Section 66 of the Information T
echnology Act
provides punishment for Computer related
offences.
“If any person, dishonestly or fraudulently, does
any act referred to in section 43, he shall be
punishable with imprisonment for a term which
may extend to three years or with fine which
may extend to five lakh rupees or with both.”
5. How do computer viruses work?
At their core, computer viruses are discreet
programs that hitch a ride on other files or
applications.
objective is
In most cases, their primary
to replicate and spread like
wildfire.
Computer viruses function as malicious
software programs designed to infect other
programs by modifying them in some way. In
doing so, a virus will attach itself to an
unsuspecting file or application in order to
spread.
6. The Infection
A virus can attach itself to any
Process
legitimate
program or document that supports macros to
execute its code, such as an email attachment
or a file download from a website. Once the file
is opened or downloaded, the virus springs into
action and starts executing.
Hiding in Plain Sight
Computer viruses can be quite crafty to remain
hidden from both users and antivirus software
alike. Viruses employ stealth techniques such
as polymorphism, which changes their
appearance, or encryption methods.
7. The Damage Done
Once activated, a virus may wreak havoc on
your computer system. It can steal sensitive
data, corrupt files, slow down performance, and
even crash your entire system. It can spread
from system to system after a user takes action
that either intentionally or accidentally facilitates
it.
8. Symptoms
The following are the symptoms that your
computer might have a virus:
Slow-running computer: programs freeze or
take a long time to load;
Screen pop-ups: including endless spam, error
messages,
redirects
unsolicited,
to
unwanted ads, and
weird
files
Disappearing files:
damaged, deleted, and/or
websites;
get randomly
encrypted;
Antivirus software not working: the program
or firewall deletes or disables itself;
9. Suspicious programs: consistently appear,
along with toolbars/icons you’ve never installed;
Email spam: with added attachments and/or
links flooding your inbox;
System blocking: you’re unable to access your
files, or system preferences;
draining: your
settings,
Battery
and/or quickly
computer
loses
overheats
power;
Homepage switching: randomly replacing and
redirecting your homepage to other websites;
Mass email send-outs: spam messages sent
from your account to your contacts.
10. TYPES OF COMPUTER VIRUSES
Boot Sector Virus – It is a type of virus that infects
the boot sector of floppy disks or the Master Boot
Record (MBR) of hard disks. The Boot sector
comprises all the files which are required to start the
Operating system of the computer. The virus either
overwrites the existing program or copies itself to
another part of the disk.
Direct Action Virus – When a virus attaches itself
directly to a .exe or .com file and enters the device
while its execution is called a Direct Action Virus. If it
gets installed in the memory, it keeps itself hidden. It
is also known as Non-Resident Virus.
Types of computer virus
Boot Sector Virus – It is a type of virus that
infects the boot sector of floppy disks or the
Master Boot Record (MBR) of hard disks. The
Boot sector comprises all the files which are
required to start the Operating system of the
computer. The virus either overwrites the existing
program or copies itself to another part of the
disk.
Direct Action Virus – When a virus attaches
itself directly to a .exe or .com file and enters the
device while its execution is called a Direct Action
Virus. If it gets installed in the memory, it keeps
itself hidden. It is also known as Non-Resident
Virus.
11. Resident Virus – A virus which saves itself in
the memory of the computer and then infects
other files and programs when its originating
program is no longer working. This virus can
easily infect other files because it is hidden in
the memory and is hard to be removed from the
system.
Multipartite Virus – A virus which can attack
both, the boot sector and the executable files of
an already infected computer is called a
multipartite virus. If a multipartite virus attacks
your system, you are at risk of cyber threat.
12. Overwrite Virus – One of the most harmful
viruses, the overwrite virus can completely
remove the existing program and replace it with
the malicious code by overwriting it. Gradually it
can completely replace the host’s programming
code with the harmful code.
Polymorphic Virus – Spread through spam and
infected websites, the polymorphic virus are file
infectors which are complex and are tough to
detect. They create a modified or morphed
version of the existing program and infect the
system and retain the original code.
13. File Infector Virus – As the name suggests, it
first infects a single file and then later spreads
itself to other executable files and programs.
The main source of this virus are games and
word processors.
Spacefiller Virus – It is a rare type of virus
which fills in the empty spaces of a file with
viruses. It is known as cavity virus. It will neither
affect the size of the file nor can be detected
easily.
Macro Virus – A virus written in the same
macro language as used in the software
program and infects the computer if a word
processor file is opened. Mainly the source of
such viruses is via emails.
15. MYDOOM
The worst computer virus outbreak in history, Mydoom
caused estimated damage of $38 billion in 2004. Also
known as Novarg, this malware is technically a “worm,”
spread by mass emailing. At one point, the Mydoom
virus was responsible for 25% of all emails sent.
THE ILOVEYOU VIRUS
This virus caused chaos worldwide, inflicting an
estimated $ 10 billion in damages. It leveraged social
engineering to trick people into opening an attachment
that appeared to be a love confession. However, the
attachment was actually a malicious script.
Once activated, the virus would send itself to everyone
in the user’s email list and overwrite files, rendering the
computer unusable.
16. THE MELISSA VIRUS
Named after an exotic dancer from Florida, this
virus was created by David L. Smith in 1999.
Once activated, the virus would email itself to the
top 50 contacts in the user’s email list, causing a
surge in email traffic that disrupted services for
governments and corporations. It
also occasionally
The virus reportedly
altered documents.
caused $80 million in
damages.
17. Conclusion
In conclusion, the exploration of
computer viruses underscores the
constant threat to digital systems. This
project has revealed the evolving
nature of malware, emphasizing the
importance of robust cybersecurity
measures. Viruses, often disguised in
innocuous files, exploit vulnerabilities
to compromise data integrity and
system functionality. As technology
advances, so do the techniques
employed by malicious
necessitating proactive
actors,
defense
strategies.
