Computer Viruses: How-To Protect Against Computer Viruses

Please add this to the first paragraph to make it look like this: Computer virus... The words "I Love You" can be scary enough without a virus attached. Computer viruses are on the rise and doing more damage than ever. Last year the "I Love You" virus wound its way through thousands of computers, shutting down entire e-mail systems for some companies. Imagine the culprit in his lonesome house in the middle of nowhere creating internet killer bugs with limited broadband access causing major damage and chaos in the world wide web. Over the past decade, countless businesses have found their priceless data corrupted or destroyed by these malicious computer programs, which can lurk undetected in innocent files for months before doing their dirty work.  Worse, existing computer viruses can mutate just like their biological cousins, increasing their destructive potential and becoming more resistant to antivirus software and other countermeasures.  15 out of every 1,000 PCs are hit by a virus each month. - ICSA Labs survey With well over 10,000 viruses out there and the production of new viruses climbing to over 200 per month (International Computer Security Association), it's more important than ever to protect your valuable equipment and data from virus attacks.

The Best Defense: How-To Protect Against Computer Viruses Preventing a viral infection of your computer is much easier than eliminating one you have already contracted. With so many offenders floating  If your computer contracts the Michaelangelo virus, it will strike on March 6 - the artist's birthday.  about, it may seem impossible to avoid them. But  there are a number of simple precautions you can take: 1. Avoid Unknown Attachments. Nowadays, most viruses are spread via e-mail attachments which, thankfully, can only become active when the attachment is opened or unzipped. While you cannot contract a virus just by receiving e-mail, it is a good idea to delete messages containing attachments if you do not know the sender, or if the subject line includes a tempting phrase like “Here is the file I promised you.”   2. Avoid Bootleg or Pirated Software. With popular software packages running upwards of $200, it can be hard to resist the lure of the bootleg versions freely available on Internet file sharing utilities such as FreeNet and Gnutella.  Virus writers take advantage of the insatiable market for bootlegs to disseminate their creations across the Internet and around the world. 3. Treat Floppy Disks and CDs With Suspicion. Prior to the mid-1990s, most computer viruses were spread via infected floppy disks. While floppy disks aren't inherently evil, as they pass  through many hands and many computers, they have  an increasingly greater chance of becoming infected by a virus - one that will then infest your system. New technologies such as CD burners (recorders) also open new doors for viruses to slip through.Homemade CD-RW disks (CDs which can be re-written using a burner) with unknown pedigrees can also be a source of infection. 4. Back It Up.  Along with hardware failure, theft and acts of God or Nature, the possibility of viral infection is just one more reason to back up your data regularly.  For Windows users, once you have chosen a backup medium (floppy disk, zip disk, CD-RW, tape drive), you can set up the Task Scheduler in Windows 95/98 to perform automatic backups on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Still, you should always keep the last and the next-to-the-last backups in case you need to restore files that have been corrupted.  5. Purchase Antivirus Software. Most antivirus software packages offer an automatic background protection mode, which will detect and clean out infections as they appear. If you don’t have this option, be sure to use the software to scan any and all Internet downloads, e-mail attachments and foreign disks before you open or run them. (More information on antiviral software is coming up in the next sections.)  Research shows that the average computer virus programmer is 14-24, talented, intelligent, and "driven by a rebellious, adolescent need to call attention to himself." - (www.uselessknowledge.com) 6. Check System Requirements. The last thing you need is to trek out, buy the software, trek back, try to install it and get a nasty error message saying "Unable to install program. You need Windows version XYZ." For example, the Windows 98 version of Symantec's Norton AntiVirus may not work on an NT 2000 system. Make sure you check the minimum system requirements and platform on the package before you buy to make sure you get the right version.  7. Scan All Drives. Once you've purchased and installed the software, schedule regular scans. Most virus scan programs are set to automatically scan the C: Drive first. It's easy to think you're home free when no viruses are found. Make sure you set the program to check all drives, including e-mail programs, as many viruses are delivered through e-mail attachments and Internet files, and spread through shared documents.  9. Update Often. For optimum protection, antivirus software must be updated on a monthly basis so that it can recognize and eradicate new bugs as they make the rounds. The updates can usually be found on the software company’s Web site, but if you need reminding, many packages will allow you to schedule automatic updates. Still, you should never assume that your antiviral software offers complete protection from infection, and you should continue to take basic safe computing precautions.