Viruses - Introduction and Safe Computing Practices

1.Introduction to Viruses
2.Back Your Files Up
3.How You Get Infected
4.Scan For Viruses
5.How to NOT Get Infected
6.Different Types of Malicious Software

Types of malicious softwareVirus Phases

Introduction to Viruses

Viruses are potentially destructive software that spreads from program to program or from disk to disk. Computer viruses need a host to infect and the host is an innocent program. Once you have a virus, every time you boot your PC or execute a program the virus may also be executing and spreading its infection. While most viruses have not been written to be destructive, viruses can cause damage to your files.PC and MAC computers are both at risk to get viruses, although PC's are more likely to be infected.

Back Your Files Up

Viruses do corrupt data files but there are more occurrences of data corruption from other causes than from viruses. Make sure you have at least two backups for all of your files. Backups are essential not only to safely recover from virus infections, but also to recover from the other threats to your data.

How You Get Infected

The most common way to get a virus is as an e-mail attachment, usually from someone who is unaware they have the virus. Usually you can only get infected by executing an infected program (such as an e-mail attachment) or booting from an infected diskette. Any diskette can be infected by a boot sector virus, even non-bootable diskettes. If you do not open the attachment, you cannot get infected.

Scan For Viruses

To find out if an attachment is a virus (or a diskette is infected), save the attachment to a 3 1/2" or zip diskette, then scan the file or diskette with an anti-virus program. Scanning will detect most, but not all viruses, because new viruses are created daily. That is why updating your virus protection is important, so you have protection against the most current viruses.

Recent viruses subject lines:
1.Here are pictures from my party
2.I wanna see you
3.New playboy screen saver
4.Love letter
5.Win $100 now