Malware

Malware, short for malicious software, is a software designed to secretly access a computer system without the owner's informed consent. the expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software or program code.



Software is considered to be malware based on the perceived intent of the creator rather than any particular features. Malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, spyware, dishonest adware, scareware, crimeware, most rootkits, and other malicious and unwanted software or program. In law, malware is sometimes known as a computer contaminant, for instance in the legal codes of several U.S. states, including California and West Virginia.