Malware is a 1990 blend of 'malicious' (from Latin malus, bad) and 'software,' coined by Israeli computer scientist Yisrael Radai as an umbrella term for hostile programs.
Software designed to damage, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to a computer system.
A blend of 'malicious' and 'software.' Malicious comes from Latin malitia (badness, ill will), from malus (bad, evil). Software, coined in 1960, follows the pattern of hardware. The word malware was coined by Israeli computer scientist Yisrael Radai in 1990 as an umbrella term for viruses, worms, trojan horses, and other hostile programs.
The word malware spawned an entire family of '-ware' compounds: spyware, adware, ransomware, scareware, bloatware, crippleware, nagware. The '-ware' suffix, originally from Old English waru (goods), has become the most productive word-formation tool in security vocabulary.