A Trojan horse, or simply a Trojan, is a type of malicious software (malware) that appears to be a legitimate program but actually contains hidden malicious code. It is named after the Trojan horse of Greek mythology, which was a wooden horse used to hide soldiers and sneak them into the city of Troy.
Trojan horses are often spread through email attachments, file downloads, or software updates. Once a Trojan is executed, it can perform a variety of malicious actions, such as stealing personal information, installing additional malware, or providing remote access to the attacker.
Unlike viruses and worms, Trojans do not replicate themselves but rely on social engineering tactics to trick users into downloading and executing them. To protect against Trojan horses, it is important to be cautious when opening email attachments or downloading files from unfamiliar sources, and to keep antivirus software up-to-date.
