42. What is Malware ?
Your site is under a malware attack and suddenly you realise that this could bring disrepute to your business and you want your website back in action. Its time you understood this phenomenon.
Let's understand Malware. Malware is the abbreviation for malicious software. It is created and / or used by hackers to disrupt computer operations, gather sensitive information, or gain access to computer systems. Most often it is software, but it can also appear in the form of scripts or code, viruses, worms, spyware, and Trojan horses. In essence, 'Malware' is a general term used to refer to various forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software which infects websites.
So, If your site has been infected or is under a malware attack, it is because of some vulnerabilities in your code that allowed a hacker to take control of your site. The hacker may change the content of your website, or add additional pages to the site, usually with the intent of tricking users into parting with personal and credit card information (also called phishing). Some hackers may even take administrative control over a hacked site.
In most common malware web attacks hackers inject malicious code. Hackers exploit security vulnerabilities in popular web software such as blogs, forums, CMS etc to insert hidden illicit content into web pages. The worst part is that thousands of website owners are unaware that their sites are hacked and infected because they have invested in low cost cheap website solutions.
Once your website is found as infected you will need to remove spam and malicious code. For this you will have to contact your website development agency or a malware removal expert. Once this is done, update your website and then ask Google to review it. Google's automatic systems will scan your website. If no malware is found, they will remove the warning from your site. This may take a day or so to happen. You can check the status of your request in Webmaster Tools on the Malware page under Health.
