Everything about Scareware
Malware designed to elicit fear, shock, or anxiety
Scareware is a form of malware which uses social engineering to cause shock, anxiety, or the perception of a threat in order to manipulate users into buying unwanted software. Scareware is part of a class of malicious software that includes rogue security software, ransomware and other scam software that tricks users into believing their computer is infected with a virus, then suggests that they download and pay for fake antivirus software to remove it. Usually the virus is fictional and the software is non-functional or malware itself. According to the Anti-Phishing Working Group, the number of scareware packages in circulation rose from 2,850 to 9,287 in the second half of 2008. In the first half of 2009, the APWG identified a 585% increase in scareware programs. Wikipedia →
🧭 Start here: a 6-step reading path
- Read the overview: ScarewareA 5-minute orientation
- Pick up a classic book: ScarewareThe most-reprinted book on the subject
- Read the landmark paper: Machine Learning for Android Scareware DetectionCited 11 times
- Go sideways: Rogue security softwareA closely related topic
- Go sideways: MS Antivirus (malware)A closely related topic
📖 Definitions
Noun Software that attempts to scare the user into compliance, as by displaying false warnings of virus infection.
🗂️ The subject at a glance
🏆 Landmark papers (most cited)
📚 Books worth reading
ScarewareZachary Halgas · 2016
Good Digital Hygiene A guide to staying secure in cyberspaceDr Eduardo Gelbstein · 2013
Good Digital Hygiene A guide to staying secure in cyberspace · 2013
Good Digital Hygiene A guide to staying secure in cyberspaceDr Eduardo Gelbstein · 2013
Good Digital Hygiene A guide to staying secure in cyberspace · 2013
Ranked by number of editions on Open Library, a rough measure of how lasting a book is.
🔗 Related topics
- Rogue security software Rogue security software is a form of malicious software and internet fraud that misleads users into believing there is a virus on their computer and aims…
- MS Antivirus (malware) MS Antivirus (also known as Spyware Protect 2009 and Antivirus XP 2008/Antivirus2009/SecurityTool/etc) is a scareware rogue anti-virus which purports to…
- WinFixer WinFixer was a family of scareware rogue security programs developed by Winsoftware which claimed to repair computer system problems on Microsoft Windows…
- SpySheriff SpySheriff (also known as BraveSentry 2.0, among other names) was malware that disguised itself as anti-spyware software created by Innovative Marketing…
- Zlob trojan The Zlob Trojan, identified by some antiviruses as Trojan.Zlob, is a Trojan horse which masquerades as a required video codec in the form of ActiveX. It…
- Vundo The Vundo Trojan (commonly known as Vundo, Virtumonde or Virtumondo, and sometimes referred to as MS Juan) is either a Trojan horse or a computer worm…
- Registry cleaner A registry cleaner is a class of utility software for removing data from the Windows Registry. Generally, it is used to remove data that is not needed…
- Computer virus A computer virus is a type of malware that, when executed, replicates itself by modifying other computer programs and inserting its own code into those…