confused, please help?

Question

who makes viruses and where do they come from, do people just sit there sending them? where did they come from in the first place?

Answer 1

they are programs, software, the same as any other. it's just that their function (as they've been programmed to do) is to try copy itself to other computers when they're ran on a pc - thus they spread.

but contrary to what the posters above me have said, there are very very few viruses which are written with a destructive element to them and i'll explain why. the aim of virus writers is to create a 'successful' virus which will infect as many computers as possible before being identified by the various anti-virus softwares.

stealth is the best way of not getting caught easily.

if the virus started deleting files or otherwise doing unusual things to the operation of the computer the owner would know instantly something is wrong and start investigating - maybe even remove the virus which means that particular instance will no longer spread.

and that is why hardly any viruses are intentionally destructive, because the writer wants the virus to spread as much as possible without getting noticed and then deleted - of course because they are not 'tested' pieces of software if the virus writer makes a mistake in the code it can have unwanted effects like slowing the pc down, or making it behave erratically, but it was not intentional for the reasons i've explained above.

it's basically a numbers game. the more infections and the more notoriety the virus gets the better for the virus writer who can brag about it within the virus writing community because he made a 'good' virus that was successful at what it did.

normally a virus will start life on the internet by being put onto one of the popular file sharing network softwares like limewire with a seductive name to entice people to download and run it in the belief they're opening something entirely different - that's one infection right there. that computer which is now infected will scan the pc for email addresses and send it's code to all email addresses it finds - if the recipients run the attachments to these emails they will also become infected, and the cycle begins again.

alot of modern viruses also place copies of themselves in the users' shared folder of softwares like limewire again with enticing names in the hope that other limewire users doing searches will find them and download and run the virus - just like the original user did.

as you can see, from one copy of the virus it can turn into hundreds, then thousands, then tens of thousands - each infection has the potential to infect another dozen computers.

Answer 2

Viruses actually come from frustration.

Someone will find a hole in a program, and more than likely tell the company that made the program about it. The company then ignores the issue because it hasn't "cost" them enough (it's part of the business mindset - that's also why most defective items aren't recalled - the company sees that even with lawsuits they'll lose more money by recalling it, and therefore they choose not to.)

The person who found the hole gets annoyed at the lack of response and asks his friends if they've found the same hole. Eventually resentment builds up and they figure out that to get the company to patch the hole, it has to be a big enough issue.

So they create a program that exploits the hole and spreads the "virus" to other vulnerable computers. The virus spreads to the point where the annoyance and the issues with it reach a critical mass - and the company has to do something about it.

Don't get me wrong, some do make viruses that are completely malicious, but most of them are just mean enough to get attention and not cause too much trouble.

The media don't show it this way because grey area problems (not completely bad or completely good) don't get the ratings like the dramatic "there's a virus that may wipe out your computer, join us at 6".

Hey... you asked.

Answer 3

Sad but true. Viruses are just programs like any other. Some dumb *** with way too much time on his hands and no life sits down and writes a program that attacks peoples computers. The worst part is that these people are so smart and are wasting the talent they have. Just imagine Bill Gates, but without any ambition or real life goals, and there you have the "hacker" that creates these things.

Answer 4

There are some people out there who just 'love' to make 'viruses' to 'mess up someone's computer' ... I call them 'bad' but they are generally called 'hackers' even though all hackers don't make viruses. A virus in a computer is 'an infective bug' that can 'grow and take over' the computer, causing it to slow down, stop, or even 'crash' ...

Answer 5

a programming lecturer once told me that hackers are failed programers thats miffed becauses they didn't make it as a programer. But with all respect, it does take a certain level of know how and intelegence, but other than a criminal record, and causing a lot of people allot of problems, why. They must spend there life's with computers. Why would they want to spend there lifes tring to cause harm to them. If you are so annoyed at computers and programs, why not just leave's yours unplugged and go and do what every it is that you want to do with your life.

Answer 6

Yep, A virus is a deliberetely made program from people who want to wreak havoc with computers, it is designed to get into your system and clear all your files.

I,m sorry to say this, but it is true.

Make sure you are using a fully updated version of an Antivirus program.

this is the one i use - AVG Antivirus

it's FREE from the net

I hope this helps you

Answer 7

Viruses are just made by nasty buggers that want to fcuk up your computer for fun.