The degree to which a virus or malware damages your system and makes you exposed to fraud depends on the kind and extent of the infection. The following are some potential effects of a computer infection:
Loss of performance: Malware can slow down your computer’s processing, consuming system resources and making tasks take much longer to complete than they should.
Loss of bandwidth: Botnets, which are computer networks that serve a central remote system and frequently distribute massive amounts of data, use up all broadband bandwidth.
Loss of functionality: In severe circumstances, a virus may impair the programming or operation of your computer to the point that you are unable to use it.
Exposure to other harmful software: A few types of malware are designed to tempt you into downloading additional harmful software.
Information loss: Ransomware can wipe out your entire hard drive if certain conditions aren’t satisfied, while viruses can delete files or data that have been stored.
Invasion of privacy: Viruses occasionally try to collect data for fraud or identity theft. In the event that your accounts are compromised, this could result in financial losses, and your company could even face fines for violating local and state laws governing data privacy.
