Editing Malware (section)

==Purposes==
Since the rise of widespread [[broadband]] [[Internet]] access, malicious software has more frequently been designed for profit. Since 2003, the majority of widespread [[computer virus|viruses]] and worms have been designed to take control of users' computers for illicit purposes.<ref>{{cite web|title=Malware Revolution: A Change in Target|url=https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc512596.aspx|date=March 2007|access-date=26 August 2017|archive-date=16 October 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016211216/https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc512596.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref> Infected "[[zombie computer]]s" can be used to send [[email spam]], to host contraband data such as [[child pornography]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Child Porn: Malware's Ultimate Evil|url=http://www.itworld.com/security/84077/child-porn-malwares-ultimate-evil|date=November 2009|access-date=22 November 2010|archive-date=22 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022155627/http://www.itworld.com/security/84077/child-porn-malwares-ultimate-evil|url-status=dead}}</ref> or to engage in [[distributed denial-of-service]] [[Attack (computing)|attacks]] as a form of [[extortion]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,116841-page,1/article.html|website=PC World|title=Zombie PCs: Silent, Growing Threat<!-- Bot generated title -->|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080727001520/http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,116841-page,1/article.html|archive-date=27 July 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> Malware is used broadly against government or corporate websites to gather sensitive information,<ref>{{cite web|last=Kovacs|first=Eduard|date=27 February 2013|title=MiniDuke Malware Used Against European Government Organizations|url=http://news.softpedia.com/news/MiniDuke-Malware-Used-Against-European-Government-Organizations-333006.shtml|access-date=27 February 2013|publisher=Softpedia|archive-date=11 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011191453/http://news.softpedia.com/news/MiniDuke-Malware-Used-Against-European-Government-Organizations-333006.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref> or to disrupt their operation in general. Further, malware can be used against individuals to gain information such as personal identification numbers or details, bank or credit card numbers, and passwords.<ref name="theregister/2022-raccoon">{{cite news|last1=Claburn|first1=Thomas|date=October 26, 2022|title=Ukrainian indicted by US govt on cybercrime charges|language=en|work=[[theregister.com]]|url=https://www.theregister.com/2022/10/26/feds_indict_ukrainian_raccoon/|access-date=27 October 2022|quote=Those deploying Raccoon used phishing messages and other tricks to get the malware onto potentially millions of victims' computers worldwide. Once installed, the code provided access to login credentials and other data stored on the compromised system.|archive-date=26 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221026235426/https://www.theregister.com/2022/10/26/feds_indict_ukrainian_raccoon/|url-status=live}}<!-- https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txwd.1152066/gov.uscourts.txwd.1152066.3.0.pdf --></ref><ref name="raccoon.ic3.gov">{{cite web|title=Raccoon Infostealer Disclosure|url=https://raccoon.ic3.gov/|access-date=27 October 2022|website=raccoon.ic3.gov|archive-date=27 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227063646/https://raccoon.ic3.gov/home|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In addition to criminal money-making, malware can be used for sabotage, often for political motives. [[Stuxnet]], for example, was designed to disrupt very specific industrial equipment. There have been politically motivated attacks which spread over and shut down large computer networks, including massive deletion of files and corruption of [[master boot record]]s, described as "computer killing." Such attacks were made on Sony Pictures Entertainment (25 November 2014, using malware known as [[Shamoon]] or W32.Disttrack) and Saudi Aramco (August 2012).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240161674/Shamoon-is-latest-malware-to-target-energy-sector|title=Shamoon is latest malware to target energy sector|access-date=18 February 2015|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923222648/http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240161674/Shamoon-is-latest-malware-to-target-energy-sector|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240235919/Computer-killing-malware-used-in-Sony-attack-a-wake-up-call-to-business?asrc=EM_MDN_37122786|title=Computer-killing malware used in Sony attack a wake-up call|access-date=18 February 2015|archive-date=7 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171207140213/http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240235919/Computer-killing-malware-used-in-Sony-attack-a-wake-up-call-to-business?asrc=EM_MDN_37122786|url-status=dead}}</ref>