Case-Based Critical Thinking Questions Case 3-3 At the ACME Widget Company the computers have started behaving weirdly. Chris noticed that his directory had some files that he didn't remember putting on his computer. Lesley noticed their computer was beginning to run very slow and Kim realized she was getting replies to emails she had not sent. The owner of the ACME Widget Company has contacted you to see if their company might have a computer security problem. You think that the computers at ACME Widget Company may be infected with a ____. You explain that it is a set of program instructions that attaches itself to a file and spreads to other files.
A) virus
B) worm
C) Trojan horse
D) bot

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The symptoms described, including files appearing without user action, slow performance, and unauthorized email activity, suggest that a virus has infected the ACME Widget Company's computers. A virus is a type of malware that can attach itself to files and spread to others on the same computer or network. Worms are similar to viruses, but they can spread without user action, often through network vulnerabilities. Trojan horses are a type of malware that can appear harmless but actually contain malicious code. Bots, short for "robots," are often used to conduct automated online tasks, such as spamming or denial-of-service attacks, but they are not typically associated with the symptoms described in this case.

Case-Based Critical Thinking Questions Case 3-3 at the ACME Widget