Although every user is still aware of this term, there are generally hardly any real (company) viruses in circulation any longer today. A classic (computer) virus infects existing files on a device in the hope that one of them is passed on to another user. If malware does not make any attempt to actively distribute itself, you call it a virus. If malware however is able to also spread automatically, e. g. by e-mail, you call it a worm.