Malicious code
Malicious code is software or executable content intentionally designed to perform unauthorized, harmful, disruptive, deceptive, or security-compromising actions.
Acing the CCNA Exam: Volume 2 Advanced Networking and Security
Malware is software designed to perform malicious actions or compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of systems or data.
- How it is used
- Positions malware as a technical threat and connects it to attacks affecting confidentiality, integrity, or availability.
- How deep it goes
- Defines malware as harmful software that infects targets and performs malicious actions, then connects it to botnets and DDoS.
- Examples
- Uses malware-infected botnets and TCP SYN floods to illustrate distributed denial-of-service attacks.
- What you can do after
- Evaluate malware’s role in technical threats and recognize its connection to botnets and distributed denial-of-service.
Read how Acing the CCNA Exam: Volume 2 Advanced Networking and Security explains malicious code →
AI for Everyday IT
Malware is software intentionally designed to damage systems, disrupt operations, or gain unauthorized access to data or resources.
- How it is used
- Uses email inspection and AI analysis to identify phishing routes for malicious code and protect organizational data.
- How deep it goes
- Defines malicious code briefly, then demonstrates phishing analysis through email headers, source text, and authentication failures.
- Examples
- Uses suspicious emails, Outlook headers, pasted source text, M365 Copilot, SPF failures, and DKIM failures.
- What you can do after
- Diagnose suspicious emails by examining headers and source text with an AI service before opening links or sharing information.
Grokking Web Application Security
Malicious code is program code intended to perform unauthorized, harmful, or security-compromising actions.
- How it is used
- Frames injection risks as ways attackers make web servers run harmful code or instructions.
- How deep it goes
- Explains attack consequences and defensive input handling, while deferring difficult malicious-file-content validation.
- Examples
- Uses ransomware deployment and MIME-type checking of an uploaded image as concrete examples.
- What you can do after
- Apply it via server-side validation, cautious upload handling, and isolation of stored files from application servers.
Read how Grokking Web Application Security explains malicious code →
Related concepts
- ransomwareincludes · Ransomware is malicious software or a cyberattack that restricts access to data or systems, typically to extort payment or another concession.
- file uploadused by · A file upload is the transfer of a file from a client or user device to a software system over a network for storage, processing, or analysis.
- Trojan horseincludes · A Trojan horse is malicious software that appears legitimate while concealing functions that compromise security or exploit the user's authorization.
- threat landscapepart of · A threat landscape is the set of threats, adversaries, attack methods, vulnerabilities, and evolving risks relevant to an organization or environment.
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