Final answer:
Opening a zip bomb causes the compressed files to expand and consume substantial hard drive space and CPU resources, potentially causing the computer to crash. Having up-to-date antivirus protection and being cautious with files from untrusted sources are key preventive measures. In case of an incident, a system restart or more serious repairs may be necessary.
Step-by-step explanation:
When you open a zip bomb, also known as a zip of death or decompression bomb, it can cause your computer to crash or become unresponsive. This occurs because a zip bomb contains massively compressed files that, when uncompressed, can take up an enormous amount of space on your computer's hard drive or consume extensive CPU resources. The compressed files often contain repetitive data, allowing them to expand to many times their original size, potentially in the gigabytes or terabytes, overwhelming the system's resources.
To protect against zip bombs, it is crucial to use up-to-date antivirus software and to be cautious when opening files from untrusted sources. If a zip bomb is inadvertently opened, the machine might require a restart, and in severe cases, it could require system repairs or reinstallation of the operating system.Always ensure your security measures are in place to guard against various forms of cyber attacks, including zip bombs. Additionally, creating frequent backups of your data can help to mitigate the damage in the event that you inadvertently open a zip bomb.