Examples of incidents | Cyber Safety

A hacker can carry out an attack on you in various ways. Problems often occur when your computer has been infected and/or your data has been seized. This page lists some of the most common types of attack.

Phishing

Phishing is a way of finding out someone’s personal details, such as a password, bank account number or other personal information. The fraudster assumes the identity of a trusted institution, making the request for information very credible. More can be found under incidents.

Malware

Malware is a container term for software that is damaging to your computer and that is intentionally malicious. Most malware is immediately detected by an up-to-date virus scanner. Below are some examples of malware briefly explained:

Ransomware

Ransomware takes your data hostage and encrypts it on your hard drive. A ransom is demanded to decrypt your data. Never pay the ransom as there is no guarantee whatsoever that you will then get your data back.

Adware

Your device can become infected with adware. In that case, advertising software is installed and ads will pop up at all sorts of moments.

Virus

A virus is a small program that influences a computer’s operation. The virus may, for example, damage computer data or even delete the entire hard disc and often sends emails in an attempt to spread further.

Trojan Horse

A Trojan Horse, Trojan for short, is a functionality hidden in a program that has been installed by the user. In this way, malicious persons attempt to damage a computer or obtain data. A Trojan can also be deployed to use your computer for a DDoS attack. This attack makes a website or internet service inaccessible by bombarding it with huge amounts of network traffic.