• A virus is a tiny program that attaches itself to another program, undetected. When the 'host' program is run, the virus activates and does whatever it was programmed to do (usually malicious in nature). As the virus is run, it usually 'infects' more files. Then, whenever those files are used, the virus does whatever it was programmed to do - again. Viruses are generally programmed to cause damage to computers, or cause glitches in systems that somehow benefit the programmer.
• Viruses that infect computers are usually as a result of Email attachments downloaded from un-trusted sources. This is called an Email virus, and it is the most common form of virus found today.
  

In this day and age of computers, the internet and email, receiving or passing on a virus can easily happen at any time.

• What is a computer virus?

A computer virus is a program designed to replicate and spread, generally with the victim being oblivious to its existence. Computer viruses spread by attaching themselves to other programs (e.g., word processors or spreadsheets application files) or to the boot sector of a disk. When an infected file is activated - or executed - or when the computer is started from an infected disk, the virus itself is also executed. Often, it lurks in computer memory, waiting to infect the next program that is activated, or the next disk that is accessed. (From the Symantec web site.)

• What Damage Can Viruses Do To My System?

As mentioned earlier, some viruses are merely annoying, others are disastrous. At the very least, viruses expand file size and slow real-time interaction, hindering performance of your machine. Many virus writers seek only to infect systems, not to damage them - so their viruses do not inflict intentional harm. However, because viruses are often flawed, even benign viruses can inadvertently interact with other software or hardware and slow or stop the system. Other viruses are more dangerous. They can continually modify or destroy data, intercept input/output devices, overwrite files and reformat hard disks. (From the Symantec web site.)

• How do I tell if a virus warning is a hoax?

Check out the Symantec web site for their hoax information
http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/hoax.html

• Here you can search their database to find hoax information on any past hoaxes.

Tell-tale signs of a hoax include the request to forward the email on to everyone, and statements like THIS IS NOT A HOAX. Don't forward the email, just delete it.

• What is the College doing?
  • All NT servers, this includes all DSP servers, are set up to run a scan for viruses on all n: drives and application folders every night.
  • Virus definitions are updated weekly from the Symantec website.
  • When a hoax inquiry is made to ITS, the network administrators check the Symantec website for more information and take any necessary steps that may be required.
  • If during the nightly scan a virus is detected that Norton could not repair, the file is deleted by a network administrator. This aids in protecting the College network from any viruses.
  • ITS recommends that all PC's purchased for internal or external college use also include the purchase of an Anti-Virus software. The college recommended anti-virus software is Norton Anti-Virus which is readily available at the College Bookstore.

Here are some tips that you can follow to safe guard your PC's, diskettes, and email.

• How to safe guard your PC and diskettes at work and at home
  • Install a anti-virus program such as Norton Anit-Virus (NAV) or McAfee. Trial versions can be downloaded from either site which allow you to test the software before purchasing.
    www.symantec.com (College Recommended)
  • www.mcafee.com
  • Regularly update your virus definitions by using their respective live updates or visiting their web sites for virus update information.
  • Scan your Hard Drive on a regular basis if you download information off the internet or use diskettes from another computer.
  • Scan diskettes from other people before reading the data.
• How to safe guard yourself against email viruses
  • Do not open email from an unknown sender.
  • Do not open attachments with the extension ".exe" unless you are certain the sender also uses and maintains an anti-virus program.
  • Exert caution when opening documents with the extension ".doc". Save the document to disk first, scan it with your anti-virus program and then if clear proceed to open the document.

• The first step in self protection is to obtain some reliable virus protection software. McAffee and Norton Anti-Virus are common ones used. They continually scan your computer and downloads, and monitor for any potential virus. You can also visit our Virus Information Page for more information.
• Never download any Email attachment(s) from a source you don't trust. Especially programs and executables. (files with an .EXE extension)