A Trojan horse is a computer program that contains malicious code designed to mislead users of their true intent. The malicious code is injected into legitimate software applications to allow a hacker to take control of an infected computer. It attacks computer systems by disguising itself as a familiar or legitimate system. The first reporting of the malware that has characteristics resembling a trojan description was made in 1975, and John Walker developed it. However, the first and official trojan horse malware was created by Ken Thompson in the early 1980s.
The trojan horse acts as a linking mechanism to the hacker, and once clicked, any data can be transferred or hacked into computers. When a user clicks a trojan, they open a loophole or backdoor into their computers which the attacker can exploit to conduct cybercrime or worse atrocities (Sajeed et al., 2017). Trojans are also famous for redirecting users to advertisements sites and unknown or illegal sites like pornography sites. Once a Trojan is installed on a computer system, criminals can use it to steal, spy, and gain unauthorized access to sensitive data on any computer.
To protect against trojans, computer users are expected to undertake several initiatives. The first step is to install and run an always up-to-date internet security suite. Furthermore, the users need to ensure that they constantly update their operating systems to help close up security loopholes that trojans can take advantage of. The users can also install firewalls to monitor network traffic and provide protection against trojan infection. Most importantly, users should always install software from legitimate sources. While browsing the internet, users should be careful about the links they click and the email attachments they download.
The future of hackers is hugely based on new technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to design smart trojans. There have been many technological advancements for detection and better ways to warn computer users against such malware. Multilayered protection systems are also used to protect computer systems from being hacked into a Trojan; therefore, Trojan installers will soon have to advance or be cut from this manipulation. In conclusion, trojans act as legitimate software but have malicious code that can be used as a backdoor into any computer system.
Reference
Sajeed, S., Minshull, C., Jain, N., & Makarov, V. (2017). Invisible Trojan-horse attack. Scientific Reports, 7(1), 1-7. Web.