What is a Trojan Virus Explained with Prevention Methods

Last Updated on February 8, 2022 by Tech Queries Team

What is a Trojan Virus?

A Trojan Virus is a type of Malware that enters your PC and damages other files. The concept of Trojan is taken from the battle of Troy (aka the Trojan War). The Greeks used the Trojan Horse to invade Troy. In this article, we will explain What is a Trojan Virus, why is it called Trojan Virus, and what are the prevention methods.

A Summary of the Trojan War:

In the year 1200 BC, the city of Troy and the Greeks were having a war. The walls of Troy were like our computer’s security system, which was difficult to break. Therefore, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse and gifted Troy as a token of victory. The people of Troy trusted the greeks and brought the Trojan Horse inside the city, bypassing the city defenses. When the people of Troy were celebrating their victory, the Greeks broke out from the wooden horse and started attacking the people of Troy by surprise. They even opened the gates of Troy to let other Greeks in. The city of Troy was completely destroyed from the inside within a few hours.

Similar to Trojan War, Hackers create fake applications so that the user installs them on the PC. After that, the software hacks the PC and provides access to the hackers. Once the hackers get access to your PC from the inside, they can steal your personal credentials, delete important files, encrypt your files (Ransomware), and much more.

The Trojan file may also contain other types of Malware such as viruses, ransomware, spyware, etc. The hackers can encrypt your essential files and ask you for ransom to decrypt them. Moreover, spyware malware can spy and steal your important data like login credentials and passwords.

Also, read What is the difference between Malware Vs Virus.

A Trojan can be any file you download from an unknown source. It can be in the form of a RAR file or executable file. When you go to unknown websites to download free music, games, movies, or software, hackers will trick you into downloading the Trojan file instead.

Trojan Virus Prevention:

1. To prevent Trojan Virus from entering your PC, you have to avoid downloading files from unknown websites and stop using pirated software. Because the Trojan Malware can only enter your PC if you allow it to.
2. Another way to prevent Trojan is by installing genuine Anti-Virus or Anti-Malware software on your PC.

Conclusion:

It is difficult to detect Trojan Malware without any Security Software. Therefore, you shall either get Anti-Virus software or stop browsing and downloading from untrusted websites. You can also share this article with your friends to make them aware of What is a Trojan Virus. We shouldn’t be careless like the people of Troy when it comes to the security of our PC and data.