There are many ways to get infected by malware, but one of the ways that people end up doing it to themselves is by clicking links that they are not familiar with, whether it be sent in an email or an instant message from a friend. However it seems that malware has evolved to the point where clicking a hyperlink is no longer necessary to infect a computer.
In a report from security firm Trend Micro (via PCMag), it seems that all it takes to infect a computer these days is just for the user to hover their mouse over a hyperlink. That being said before you declare the internet dead, it seems that this exploit only works with Microsoft’s PowerPoint presentation app, and even then it will depend on the version that you are using.
For example those still using older versions of PowerPoint will get the full brunt of the malware, while those with newer versions will get a security risk warning, but users can still proceed anyway. However as Trend Micro points out, getting infected isn’t quite as easy and requires many steps involved before it is successful, so it’s not as if you should avoid using PowerPoint or open any PowerPoint files completely.
Trend Micro is also recommending that users use Protected View, a feature Microsoft enables by default, especially if this is an attachment sent by someone you’re not too familiar with, or if it seems particularly suspicious.