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My
Computer Wont be in Today it has a Virus.
Page 3.
By Matt Western.
So
How Can I Stay Virus Free?
I
can't recommend strongly enough that you purchase and install
an anti virus program on your computer.
There
are many anti virus programs available and although they each
have their own special features and quirks, they are pretty good
at stopping viruses in their tracks.
I
also listed several other steps earlier that you can take to help
in your fight against viruses.
What
Should I Look For in an Anti Virus Program?
Most
anti virus programs contain the same basic functions and features.
Here's
a quick run down of what a good anti virus program should contain.
1
- Easy to install.
You shouldn't need to make too many decisions when you are installing
the software. The writers of the program should have a pretty
good idea of what you want the program to do, so a quick and easy
installation should be the order of the day.
2
- Ability to schedule program updates automatically.
Anti virus programs consist of two main components.
The
largest component is the core program itself. This is the part
of the program that does all the work. It caries out instructions
it is given and performs tasks as requested by other sub components
of the program.
The
second main component is what I call it the virus signature definition
file.
The
virus signature definition file is, if not the most important
part, it must very near the most important part of the anti virus
program.
The
virus signature definition file tells the anti virus program what
to look or search for when it goes scanning for viruses.
When
a file becomes infected with a virus, the virus leaves a footprint
behind within the file.
It
is similar to walking down a beach and looking for a particular
persons footprint in the sand. Once you find the footprint you
can then go on to track that person down.
This
is what the virus signature definition file does for the anti
virus program. It contains a list of what each 'virus footprint'
looks like. The anti virus program can then go looking for these
footprints in the files it scans.
So you can see why it is important to use an anti virus program
that comes from a manufacturer that quickly updates their virus
signature definition files. If a new virus breaks out, you want
to tell your anti virus program to look for that new footprint
as soon as possible.
Ideally
you want an anti virus program that will allow you to, let's say,
download new virus signature definition files every whenever.
You don't want to have to remember to do this yourself.
You
should be able to schedule the program to do it for you so your
virus signature definition file is always up to date.
It
is a good idea to be able to schedule your anti virus program
to download updates in hourly increments
Downloading
updates every week is way too long to wait and even every day
is becoming too long to wait for an update, so you should try
and find a program that will allow you to schedule a download
in hour increments.
3 - Ability to Rename, Move, Delete or Quarantine Infected files
When your anti virus program detects an infected file it will
act upon the file depending on what you have told the program
to do.
Most
if not all anti virus programs will allow you to either.
Rename
You should be able to rename the infected file. This gives you
the ability to call the file a different name, this may in turn
defeat the virus if it needs to use the infected file for part
of its' treachery.
When
you select to rename infected files, you usually alter the filenames
extension. This is the part of the filename that comes after the
'.' For example the extension to the filename antivirus.exe is
exe.
By
renaming infected files you are able to easily identify infected
files later on.
Move
By moving infected files you can put them in a different place
to where the virus expects to find them and also in a place where
you wont innocently stumble upon and maybe activate them.
Delete
This is possibly the most useful option but it is permanent.
By
deleting the infected file you are preventing the virus from spreading
and removing the chance of you inadvertently activating the virus
should you enable its' payload.
The
only issue is that once you delete an infected file it can be
difficult to get the file back.
But
would you want a virus infected file back?
Yes,
you just might. Perhaps your thesis is infected. You may just
want to move or rename it so you can try and uninfect the file
with your anti virus program or another anti virus program if
yours can't do the job.
You
may want to think about the other selections before choosing the
delete option.
Quarantine
A quarantine option is very useful.
This
option tells the anti virus program to place any infected files
it detects into a directory somewhere. Then you can at your leisure
go through the quarantined files and see if there are any you
want to keep and try to remove the virus from.
The
Quarantine selection or option will usually allow you set a time
for how long you want to keep these infected files. For example,
you may set your quarantine option to delete all quarantined files
after 10 days.
Most
well known anti virus programs will contain all of the above mentioned
features or options plus many more.
Here is a quick write up of some of the anti virus programs I
have experience using and maintaining.
Symantec
- Symantec or Norton Anti Virus - http://www.symantec.com
Symantec
is the company name. They used to be known as Norton named after
a chap who started the company, Peter Norton.
Symantec's'
anti virus program is a pretty good integrated package. It includes
ways in which you can schedule the anti virus program to automatically
download updated virus signature files every so often.
Symantec's
technical support web page is also quite good. It has a lot of
information on virus and how to tackle and remove them. Their
support site also includes things such as links to special little
programs (known as 'tools') the Symantec people have written to
help remove the damage a virus has done to your computer.
Vet - Vet Anti Virus - http://www.vet.com.au
Vet
started off as an Australian company which was acquired by Computer
Associates (CA). Vet is CA's small environment (small office and
home) anti virus product.
Vet
is a good anti virus product but there are some features that
are a bit clunky. I have also found that locating and downloading
the software I want or need has been awkward from time to time.
Vet
allows you to automatically schedule the downloading of updated
virus signature files but it doesn't (at the time of writing)
allow you to easily download these files from a web site to place
on a computer not connected to the Internet. This is great detraction
from the program.
Computer Associates - InoculateIT - http://www.ca.com
InoculateIT
is CA's anti virus solution for larger environments.
InoculateIT
is very configurable and allows you to use either the InoculateIT
or Vet or both engines (virus signature definition files) to detect
viruses.
It
includes all the features I have listed above and you can set
it up to monitor all the PC's within a network from a single location
to ensure they are all kept up to date.
Here
is a list of some other well known anti virus programs. I haven't
had recent experience with the following programs so I don't really
want to provide any advice on what each program does or how useful
it is.
But
what I do know is that each of the following anti virus programs
have been around for a few generations of the product so they
are well established and supported by their respective manufacturers.
Trend Micro - PC-cillin - http://www.antivirus.com
PC-cillin
is a combination anti virus, anti hacker, security product. Trend
Micro have been involved in this area of PC software for many
years and their web site and newsletter that backs up their ant
virus product rang is one o9f the best out there.
McAfee - McAfee Virusscan. - http://www.mcafee.com
Another
long term player in the anti virus market. It's been many years
since I have played with McAfee's anti virus software. They are
an established company with great support.
Sophos - http://www.sophos.com
I
can't recall using the Sophos anti virus product. However their
web site is very informative and they say that their small office
and home based anti virus product requires no technical knowledge
is very simple to install.
What
about free Anti Virus Programs?
I'm
sure you've heard the saying "you only get what you pay for"
That
saying applies to free anti virus programs as well. There are
free anti virus programs around on the Internet but I wonder as
to how thorough these programs are.
Remember,
what we're talking about here is protecting your data, email and
programs. If you're like me, they will be pretty important items
and you'll like to know that they are being protected as well
as they possibly can be.
I
have used a free anti virus program in the past; my curiosity
got the better of me. I found that the company that produces the
program did not update their virus signature files very often,
I think I went 2 weeks before my signature files were updated.
When
you're trying to protect your data etc, your signature files must
know about every latest virus that is hitting the Internet and
2 weeks is just too long to go without having your virus signature
definition files updated.
So what do I recommend?
I
recommend you spend the money and buy a good quality anti virus
program. All of the anti virus programs I have mentioned in this
article will do a great job.
Follow
some of the tips I have included here and always be aware of suspicious
looking email, shady web sites and free software.
My
Computer Wont be in Today it has a Virus.
Page
1
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Article
© Matt Western - deTechnify.com
**********************************************************
Matt Western has been working in the electronics and IT areas
since 1983. These days he heads up deTechnify.com a web site aimed
at clearing away the technical haze surrounding computers computing
and the internet.
You can contact Matt via http://www.detechnify.com
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