scareware

American  

[skair-wair] / ˈskɛərˌwɛər /

noun

1. Computers. software that is sold as computer security or as an antivirus or other utility program but is either useless or is itself malware.

   I was a victim of scareware—I got a warning that my computer was about to fail, so I panicked and purchased the advertised software, which wiped my hard drive instead of fixing it!

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Etymology

Origin of scareware

scare + -ware

Example Sentences

All of which brings us to the case of Mikael Patrick Sallnert, 37, a citizen of Sweden, who established and operated credit card payment processing services for the scareware ring cited above.

From Forbes • Dec. 17, 2012

Church blogs and Christian youth forums aren’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think of scareware, malware, worms, and Trojan horses?

From Slate • May 24, 2012

Because these things shouldn't just happen by themselves; you have to hit a malicious Web site or run the wrong file that arrives in e-mail, via a "scareware" pop-up ad or some other download.

From Washington Post • Feb. 5, 2010