Is It a Virus or What?

Virus.....Trojan.....Worm.....Hoax.....Joke.....Virus.....Trojan.....Worm.....Hoax....Joke

Computer jargon gets to be a bit much at times.  It is difficult to keep straight all of the terms and what they refer to.  Certainly terms can be defined in the glossary, as all of these are, but it might help with understanding to show how they are alike and how they are different.  Below are diagrams that show the relationship between viruses, trojans, and worms and between hoaxes and jokes.  The diagrams are used to show overlapping characteristics and distinguishing characteristics.

Diagram:  Virus...Trojan...Worm

Viruses, trojans, and worms are all terms that refer to potentially harmful computer programs that can get into a computer or a network system.  Worms are often classified as a virus yet have very distinguishing characteristics from other types of viruses.  Trojans are not the same thing as a virus or a worm.  To complicate things a bit, trojans can be carried to the computer via a virus or worm.