VIGILANCE, SOFTWARE GUARD AGAINST DESTRUCTIVE VIRUSES.Byline: Dan Keating This article is about a recently deceased person. Some information, such as the circumstances of the person's death and surrounding events, may change rapidly as more facts become known. Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire I got a sad phone call this week from J.R. in Miami, Fla. Not the famous J.R. of "Who Shot J.R.?" fame. But she'll be at least a little bit famous now, because her sad tale is going public. Her son was on a commercial on-line service and inquired about getting a popular program. Someone he didn't know volunteered to send it to him electronically. In the wonder of computer technology, the new file arrived in a moment. The son downloaded the file to his own computer, fired it up and - ZAP! He and his computer got trashed trashed adj. Slang Drunk or intoxicated. Our Living Language Expressions for intoxication are among those that best showcase the creativity of slang. . "He usually does a virus scan virus scan Informatics A computer program that can ID code–geek speak for computer program subroutines–often found in computer viruses. See Computer virus. ," said his mother. But not this time. Man, oh man, it hurts. So, the first and most ironclad ironclad, mid-19th-century wooden warship protected from gunfire by iron armor. The success of the ironclad when first employed by the French in the Crimean War sparked a naval armor and armaments race between France and Great Britain. rule of safe computing is to be careful about what goes into your computer. All the good rules from safe sex apply: Know who you're dealing with, be careful what kind of crowd you hang out with, don't accept anything from strangers, and use protection! Viruses are hidden programs, which people write and then spread - maybe to show off their programming prowess, maybe just out of meanness. The viruses come tucked in supposedly desirable computer software or on computer disks, and infect infect /in·fect/ (in-fekt´) 1. to invade and produce infection in. 2. to transmit a pathogen or disease to. in·fect v. 1. everything they encounter. Some are just pranks; others can cause catastrophic damage to computers. (One of the most notorious, the Michelangelo virus, sits quietly on your computer all year and then rears its ugly and destructive head on the great artist's birthday, March 6.) They can delete files See file wipe and delete. , like things you've been saving, or software that runs the computer - which causes huge problems. You can't get a virus from looking at e-mail, since e-mail isn't a software program that does things. But e-mail can have other files attached, like a longer note or a program file. If that attached file is a program (or a Microsoft Word A full-featured word processing program for Windows and the Macintosh from Microsoft. Included in the Microsoft application suite, it is a sophisticated program with rudimentary desktop publishing capabilities that has become the most widely used word processing application on the market. document - which can carry a virus in its document-handling features), then you have to be careful of viruses. Also, you can't get a virus from just surfing the Internet's World Wide Web or commercial on-line services - but you can if you download things. Downloading files directly from reputable organizations is almost always safe. Taking things from people you don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. is dangerous. Now, let's talk about protection: anti-virus software anti-virus software n → Antivirensoftware f . There are two main varieties. The first kind scans your computer at your command to look for nasty things. With this type, you can put all downloaded files into a particular directory on your computer (mine is called "incoming"). Then, before you run anything you've downloaded, tell the scanning program to scan just that directory for viruses. Scanning programs all come with scheduling capability, so you can order them to scan weekly or nightly or whenever you want. Many will also automatically scan any new disk put into the computer. Examples of scanning virus software are Central Point Anti-Virus Central Point Anti-Virus (CPAV) was a DOS-based antivirus program developed by former Central Point Software Inc. (acquired by Symantec Corporation in 1994). It was partly adapted into Microsoft Anti-Virus's DOS and Windows versions (MSAV and MWAV), and merged into Norton for DOS, Windows and OS/2, Ontrack VirusScan for DOS, Windows and OS/2, or Disinfectant disinfectant, agent that destroys disease-causing microorganisms and their spores. Disinfectants, or germicides, are sometimes considered to be substances applied to inanimate bodies, whereas antiseptics, not so potent, are agents that kill microbes on living things. for Macintosh (which is free). The other major kind stays in the background on your computer all the time. It not only does a scan when you start up, but it inspects new files as they arrive. It also watches for "suspicious activity," like any program that tries to mess with mess with Verb Informal, chiefly US to interfere in, or become involved with, a dangerous person, thing, or situation: he had started messing with drugs the grisly gris·ly adj. gris·li·er, gris·li·est Inspiring repugnance; gruesome. See Synonyms at ghastly. [Middle English grisli, from Old English grisl innards of your computer system - where no program has a need to go. Anything trying to erase those files is probably up to no good! Examples of this kind of software are Datawatch Virex for Macintosh, Norton Anti-Virus for DOS/Windows and OS/2, Symantec Anti-Virus for the Macintosh (known as SAM), IBM (International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY, www.ibm.com) The world's largest computer company. IBM's product lines include the S/390 mainframes (zSeries), AS/400 midrange business systems (iSeries), RS/6000 workstations and servers (pSeries), Intel-based servers (xSeries) Antivirus for DOS/Windows and OS/2, and McAfee VirusScan for DOS, Windows and OS/2. All of the virus programs will remove the viruses and "clean" your system. Often this can be done without losing any of the information from the "infected in·fect tr.v. in·fect·ed, in·fect·ing, in·fects 1. To contaminate with a pathogenic microorganism or agent. 2. To communicate a pathogen or disease to. 3. To invade and produce infection in. " areas, but sometimes files on the computer are "corrupted" - damaged beyond repair. But the sooner or more often you check for viruses, the less you'll lose if infection strikes. Some other notes: Remember that the automatic monitoring software runs all the time, so if you have a system with minimal brainpower brain·pow·er n. 1. Intellectual capacity. 2. People of well-developed mental abilities: a country that doesn't value its brainpower. Noun 1. , you don't want to be using up some on the virus monitor. If you generally practice safe computing, you might not need the perpetual monitoring. On the other hand, if security is a top priority for you and you regularly risk exposure (sharing disks, downloading programs), then automatic monitoring might work for you. If you have Windows 95, make sure to get software made specifically for it, because software for the older Windows won't work. When you buy virus software, be sure to check for the "subscription price." An oft-quoted (but never proven) statistic is that three new viruses are created every day. I don't know if the number is right, but new viruses do pop up constantly, and that's why you need to buy a subscription - to keep your anti-virus software updated. Otherwise, a hot new killer virus might go right past your defenses. Most products let you get the update right off the company's Internet or dial-in computer bulletin board service. A new product out from McAfee offers interesting protection to heavy-duty Web surfers. Called WebScan, it will automatically screen any new program that you download or pull off e-mail. But it doesn't clean the virus. It only reports it and suggests that you clean it with a regular anti-virus product, or delete it. So it doesn't try to be a full-service virus protector protector /pro·tec·tor/ (-tek´ter) a substance in a catalyst that prolongs the rate of activity in the latter. . On the other hand, if you download a lot of things off the Internet, it might be a good extra protection for you. One final note: If you want to learn more about viruses and protecting yourself, check out the National Computer Security Association on line. You'll see the latest alerts to keep yourself protected. Protection SCANNING SOFTWARE: This software scans your computer at your command. You can put all downloaded files into a particular directory on your computer. Then, before you run anything you've downloaded, tell the scanning program to scan just that directory for viruses. Scanning programs all come with scheduling capability, so you can order them to scan weekly or nightly. Many will also automatically scan any new disk put into the computer. Examples of scanning virus software are Central Point Anti-Virus for DOS, Windows and OS/2, Ontrack VirusScan for DOS, Windows and OS/2, or Disinfectant for Macintosh (which is free). MONITORING SOFTWARE: This type of program stays in the background on your computer all the time. It scans when you start up, and it inspects new files as they arrive. It also searches for "suspicious activity," like any program that attempts to mess with your computer system - where no program has a need to go. Examples of this kind of software are Datawatch Virex for Macintosh, Norton Anti-Virus for DOS/Windows and OS/2, Symantec Anti-Virus for the Macintosh (known as SAM), IBM Antivirus for DOS/Windows and OS/2, and McAfee VirusScan for DOS, Windows and OS/2. CAPTION(S): CHART PROTECTION (see text) |
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