Before we get into the specifics of how to analyze malware, we need to define some terminology, cover common types of malware, and introduce the fundamental approaches to malware analysis. Any software that does something that causes detriment to the user, computer, or network—such as viruses, trojan horses, worms, rootkits, scareware, and spyware—can be considered malware. While malware appears in many different forms, common techniques are used to analyze malware. Your choice of which technique to employ will depend on your goals.