Keeping computers free from viruses is a constant battle.
New computer viruses are being created everyday by cyber criminals who are working hard towards achieving their aim. Eugene Kaspersky, a computer security researcher, reported in an article in Security News of November, 2005 that his lab receives 200 to 300 new samples of viruses and Trojans everyday. This shows the enormity of the problem.
The viruses infecting a computer are of many types just like their human counterpart. Some are benign and some others absolutely fatal; a few of them quietly damage the system like termites, without the user even being aware of its presence until the damage assumes enormous proportions. The treatment of computer viruses also has human analogy, which is prevention and cure.
Antivirus Protection: Prevention
Preventing a virus from entering your computer can be achieved by following a cautious approach to any new programs, files, e-books etc. that are loaded on to the system. They may be copied through floppies, CDs etc. manually or may be downloaded online from another system or the internet. They should be scanned first with antivirus software before being copied or opened. The right click option of most antivirus software makes it easy to scan any suspicious file or program. “Scan it first” should be the general rule.
Firewalls can filter out or warn potential virus threats but they can not completely eliminate them because viruses can be hidden in several ways in data as well as in programs to escape from firewalls detection. Prevention is better than cure, so goes a saying. It may not always be possible to prevent all types of virus threats, however and sooner or later, you will face a virus that has surreptiously entered your system.
Antivirus Protection: Treatment
In order to mitigate the damage from possible virus attacks, backing up of important files containing data or programs or both should be carried out periodically. This could be done by burning CDs or stored in removable hard disk. The backups should be scanned to ensure they are virus-free when they are created.
The programs and data could be stored in separate drives like C and D drives, with the latter allocated larger space than the former.
All important information like proof of purchase of software, software registration, setup info, activation codes etc. should be stored in a file in D drive. Most of the virus infections are likely to happen in the programs part of C drive. Hence it should be scanned daily for potential viruses. The larger D drive could be scanned on fortnightly or monthly basis.
Should a virus attack be detected, the antivirus software can usually isolate and neutralise most viruses. The system can quickly be restored from the clean back-ups once any damage done by the virus has been corrected.
Keeping computers free from viruses is an ongoing battle, but proper preparation will give the forces of Good a fighting chance!
Image: Johan Larsson
If you liked my post, feel free to subscribe to my rss feeds
