<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> <head> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /> <title>VeraCrypt - Free Open source disk encryption with strong security for the Paranoid</title> <meta name="description" content="VeraCrypt is free open-source disk encryption software for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. In case an attacker forces you to reveal the password, VeraCrypt provides plausible deniability. In contrast to file encryption, data encryption performed by VeraCrypt is real-time (on-the-fly), automatic, transparent, needs very little memory, and does not involve temporary unencrypted files."/> <meta name="keywords" content="encryption, security"/> <link href="styles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> </head> <body> <div> <a href="Documentation.html"><img src="VeraCrypt128x128.png" alt="VeraCrypt"/></a> </div> <div id="menu"> <ul> <li><a href="Home.html">Home</a></li> <li><a href="/code/">Source Code</a></li> <li><a href="Downloads.html">Downloads</a></li> <li><a class="active" href="Documentation.html">Documentation</a></li> <li><a href="Donation.html">Donate</a></li> <li><a href="https://sourceforge.net/p/veracrypt/discussion/" target="_blank">Forums</a></li> </ul> </div> <div> <p> <a href="Documentation.html">Documentation</a> <img src="arrow_right.gif" alt=">>" style="margin-top: 5px"> <a href="Security%20Requirements%20and%20Precautions.html">Security Requirements and Precautions</a> <img src="arrow_right.gif" alt=">>" style="margin-top: 5px"> <a href="Malware.html">Malware</a> </p></div> <div class="wikidoc"> <h1>Malware</h1> <div style="text-align:left; margin-top:19px; margin-bottom:19px; padding-top:0px; padding-bottom:0px"> The term 'malware' refers collectively to all types of malicious software, such as computer viruses, Trojan horses, spyware, or generally any piece of software (including VeraCrypt or an operating system component) that has been altered, prepared, or can be controlled, by an attacker. Some kinds of malware are designed e.g. to log keystrokes, including typed passwords (such captured passwords are then either sent to the attacker over the Internet or saved to an unencrypted local drive from which the attacker might be able to read it later, when he or she gains physical access to the computer). If you use VeraCrypt on a computer infected with any kind of malware, VeraCrypt may become unable to secure data on the computer.* Therefore, you must <em style="text-align:left">not</em> use VeraCrypt on such a computer.</div> <div style="text-align:left; margin-top:19px; margin-bottom:19px; padding-top:0px; padding-bottom:0px"> It is important to note that VeraCrypt is encryption software, <em style="text-align:left"> not</em> anti-malware software. It is your responsibility to prevent malware from running on the computer. If you do not, VeraCrypt may become unable to secure data on the computer.</div> <div style="text-align:left; margin-top:19px; margin-bottom:19px; padding-top:0px; padding-bottom:0px"> There are many rules that you should follow to help prevent malware from running on your computer. Among the most important rules are the following: Keep your operating system, Internet browser, and other critical software, up-to-date. In Windows XP or later, turn on DEP for all programs.** Do not open suspicious email attachments, especially executable files, even if they appear to have been sent by your relatives or friends (their computers might be infected with malware sending malicious emails from their computers/accounts without their knowledge). Do not follow suspicious links contained in emails or on websites (even if the email/website appears to be harmless or trustworthy). Do not visit any suspicious websites. Do not download or install any suspicious software. Consider using good, trustworthy, anti-malware software.</div> <p><br style="text-align:left"> </p> <hr align="left" size="1" width="189" style="text-align:left; height:0px; border-width:0px 1px 1px; border-style:solid; border-color:#000000"> <p><span style="text-align:left; font-size:10px; line-height:12px">* In this section (<em style="text-align:left">Malware</em>), the phrase "data on the computer" means data on internal and external storage devices/media (including removable devices and network drives) connected to the computer.</span><br style="text-align:left"> <span style="text-align:left; font-size:10px; line-height:12px">** DEP stands for Data Execution Prevention. For more information about DEP, please visit <a href="https://support.microsoft.com/kb/875352" style="text-align:left; color:#0080c0; text-decoration:none"> https://support.microsoft.com/kb/875352</a> and <a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc700810.aspx" style="text-align:left; color:#0080c0; text-decoration:none"> http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc700810.aspx</a>.</span></p> </div><div class="ClearBoth"></div></body></html>