Software security is an issue of great importance to individuals and organizations. Factors that corrupt software security can lead to immense loss of data and personal property. Many organizations across the world including government institutions have in the past been victims of software security threats (Kosseff, 2017). A good example is the recent NHS attack in the UK (Kosseff, 2017). Software security threats come in different forms namely, viruses, worms, Trojans horses, and hackers. When they occur, they impaired the normal function of the computer software applications and files. Mostly, they encrypt and delete important files in the affected computer system.

A virus is a malware. A malware is a combination of two computer terminologies, malicious software. Viruses attack vulnerable software applications in a computer system. After gaining entry virus replicate and multiply in number into other important data storage points in the computer (Kosseff, 2017). The damage the data stored by deleting important files. They spread a computer system through files, documents, and web apps. They could also be transferred from one system to another through portable storage devices such as USB and external hard disks (Kosseff, 2017). Malicious persons can use viruses to steal information and data or cripple the functioning of a system. Stuxnet is an example of a virus created between 2000 and 2001 to attack Iran’s Uranium plant in Natanz (Kosseff, 2017).

Ransomware is another example of software security threat. Individuals who want to solicit ransom from target organizations use ransomware to enhance their bargaining power. Once a ransomware is successfully deployed, it bars users from accessing important files on a computer system (Kosseff, 2017). This malware encrypts important files and documents until a certain amount of ransom is paid to the attackers. Recently, UK NHS attack faced ransomware attack, which encrypted its important files. The attackers demanded that they are paid in bitcoin, a crypto-currency that is difficult to trace.

Worms affect computers by leveraging operating system vulnerabilities. Worms do not affect files and documents in most cases. They target the host’s network bandwidth. They also affect the computer by overloading web servers. In serious cases, worms may come with payloads that damage the host computer (Kosseff, 2017). Payloads are carefully written codes do perform other functions other than spreading the worm itself; their main role is to damage the host computer by stealing data, creating botnets, and deleting files. The difference between worms and virus is the former has the exceptional ability to self-replicate, while the later depends on human activities to spread. Many organizational computers have experienced warm attack. A good example is the worm attack on of 2004 on U.S military in Afghanistan (Kosseff, 2017).

Trojan horses a deadly malware that is terribly cunning because of its inability to self-replicate. Trojan horses disguise their activities in the host computer, as they appear to be playing a positive role (Kosseff, 2017). Contrary this malware explores the computers system seeking vulnerable areas to attack. Mostly, hackers use Trojan horses to access a computer system from a remote location. This allows them to explore the system and steal valuable data and information (Kosseff, 2017). They allow hackers to download and upload files in the host computer. Many hacking cases are successful because hackers use Trojan horses. Shadow brokers have in the past used Trojan horses to attack NSA systems in the U.S. Besides the NSA attacks, Trojan horses have also been linked with the Halloween leaks of 2016 (Kosseff, 2017). For this reason, it is important to examine vulnerabilities in a computer and find the best mitigation approaches to prevent them before they cause great losses.

Reference
Kosseff, J. (2017). Cybersecurity law. Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons.