What is Rootkit?

A rootkit is a program (or collection of programs) that installs and executes code on a system without end user consent or knowledge. It uses stealth to maintain a persistent and undetectable presence on the machine. Rootkits do not infect machines malware, but rather, seek to provide an undetectable environment for malicious code to execute. Rootkits are installed on systems via social engineering, upon execution of malware, or simply by browsing a malicious website. Once installed, an attacker can perform virtually any function on the system to include remote access, eavesdropping, as well as hide processes, files, registry keys and communication channels.