Drive-by Download Attacks

A common way to get infected with malware is by visiting compromised websites. Cyber criminals use drive-by download attacks to gain access to your system. Drive-by downloads are malicious programs that are installed on your computer while visiting an infected website or viewing an HTML email message. Just like other malware, drive-by downloads are installed without your consent and can infect your PC, tablet, or smartphone.
Drive-by downloads are dangerous because you don't have to have to click on a hyperlink within a webpage or email to get infected. The malware installs on your computer just by visiting the compromised website or by opening the infected email. Drive-by downloads are considered to be client-side attacks, which target vulnerabilities within your system. The malware can exploit browser and system vulnerabilities due to low security settings.
Once installed, the malware deployed by a drive-by download is capable of stealing your personal information by logging your keystrokes and can install additional malware.  iLivid and Seedabutor are malware examples that are deployed by drive-by downloads. The best prevention method is to ensure that you have the latest Internet browser version installed and that you have the appropriate settings configured. Furthermore, you can view your emails in plain text with no HTML formatting. Disabling HTML features can prevent an infected email from compromising your system.