Your Computer Cannot Distinguish Data From Code

Computers do not inherently know the difference between a document and a program. To a machine, every file is just raw data, and it only becomes an executable command when the processor is told to treat that specific information as a set of instructions.

This means your computer is constantly flipping between reading information and acting upon it. When you click an application, you are essentially telling the CPU to stop interpreting that file as static data and start running it as a command sequence. This fundamental ambiguity is why hackers often try to trick systems into executing disguised data files to spread viruses. Understanding this distinction is the key to grasping how all modern digital devices actually operate.