You see it start with open-source intelligence gathering and those carefully crafted spear phishing emails, quiet, almost invisible. Then comes privilege escalation, attackers slipping deeper, moving sideways through the network (lateral movement, in technical terms). They don’t rush. Data gets…
You start noticing, the more you study advanced persistent threat groups, the more they blur into the methods of old-school spies. What stands out? Patience. These groups don’t rush, they’ll camp out in a network for months, sometimes years, quietly…
You can spot the difference right away, Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) aren’t your average cybercriminals. They’re patient, methodical, and almost invisible, slipping past defenses and sticking around for months. One overlooked clue, and you might not notice them until it’s…
Ever notice your system acting off, but scans say everything’s fine? That’s rootkit behavior, hiding in plain sight, changing system files, and dodging even the best antivirus. Outdated security or unpatched software is basically an open door for them. They’ll…
You look at the usual security tools, and they just don’t cut it for fileless malware. This stuff hides in plain sight, living in memory and twisting trusted tools like PowerShell or WMI. No files, nothing for scanners to grab…
Most folks have probably dealt with adware, those annoying pop-ups or banners that show up after clicking the wrong link. It’s obvious, just trying to sell you stuff, and usually slows your computer down. Spyware different. It hides, watches, and…
Use the wrong word in front of the wrong crowd, and you’ll see eyes roll: “virus” for “worm,” “worm” for “virus.” I’ve spent late nights in the Yale library untangling these terms, patching up my own laptop after a worm…
You think you know your computer, but Trojan horse malware changes that fast. It hides inside what looks like safe software, waiting for you to trust it. The second you run it, it can swipe your files, grab your passwords,…
You notice quickly that ransomware doesn’t always come through the front door. It sneaks in, phishing emails, sketchy downloads, weak passwords, unpatched software. Sometimes it’s just one click, and everything’s locked. Wish someone had hammered home how fast it spreads…
You can usually spot spyware by running trusted detection software, regular scans are key. If a computer starts dragging, pop-ups appear out of nowhere, or strange apps show up, that’s a red flag. Start up in Safe Mode (it limits…