Evaluating Grayware Characteristics and Risks

Table 2

Categories of species in the Trend Micro grayware encyclopedia.

ID	Name	Description	Num	Pct
1	Spyware	Install on user systems to track activities and collect data	52075	59.97
2	Dialer	Redirect calls to premium 900 numbers for financial purpose	15196	17.50
3	Adware	Display pop-ups/pop-unders and may be active after hosts terminate	14124	16.27
4	Hacking Tool	Various toolkits for malicious purposes	3672	4.23
5	Browser Helper Object	Plugins to browsers and track surfing habits and gather information	691	0.80
6	Cracking Application	Recover passwords from encrypted forms by brute-force/algorithms	624	0.72
7	Trojan Spyware	Stealthy programs to conduct harmful activities	608	0.70
8	Toolbar	Perform searching or file downloading and modify search results	394	0.45
9	Trackware	Track Web browsing activities for targeting ads or malicious purposes	116	0.13
10	Keylogger	Records keystrokes and send to attackers	85	0.10
11	Remote Access Trojan	Abuse for system administration or info theft	75	0.09
12	Hijacker	Manipulate system settings to reroute traffic	45	0.05
13	Dropper	Program that can retrieve and install other malware or grayware	82	0.09
14	Freeloader	Retrieve, install, and execute other software in background	49	0.06
15	Joke Program	Annoy users but do not infect files	425	0.49