The fact is that nobody wants to know any more about computer viruses than they need to know. The problem is that’s just about everything. Computer viruses have long shelf lives, and can be a problem even years after they’re obsolete. If you’ve ever seen a virus scan pages long with a solid list of Trojans, you’ll appreciate how dangerous these things are. Viruses are a real daily issue for IT support people, and up to date security is a must.

Computer Virus
Photo: .hj barraza

The word “virus” has gone into the language as a generic description.  A computer virus is one form of a class of software which is generally called malware. Malware includes viruses, Trojans, spyware, and worms as major “species”.

Computer virus basics

A virus is a small program designed to infiltrate a computer and either replicate and spread to other computers, or just do damage to the infected system (some viruses seem to be created by truly infantile minds) or far more seriously steal personal information.

Some more advanced forms of malware can also take control of computers without the user’s knowledge. These hijacked computers are called zombies or bots. This is the most serious class of malware. The identity theft stories aren’t myths. These types of malware are a major industry for criminals, and the thefts are worth billions annually.

Virus symptoms

These are common symptoms of viruses:

  • Data loss (Hard drives can be wiped clean)
  • Data theft- Strange transactions on your accounts.
  • Extremely slow computers
  • People on your email address book getting strange emails

There are many variations on these situations, but the fact is that viruses don’t exactly advertise their presence. The longer they’re in a computer, the more damage they can do.

Virus remedies

The basic remedy for computer users is an all-round real time online anti-virus system. There’s a range online, some free, some subscription based. Some of the free systems are OK, but their performance is usually limited as an incentive for people to upgrade to the paid systems. That’s not quite as counterproductive as it might seem, but it does mean there are gaps in the free systems.

Not all antiviral systems are equal. Even the expensive name brands can be pretty suspect.

A good antiviral system will provide:

  • Real time blocks to known bad sites: “Bad site” can mean a site that can hit your computer with 5 Trojans in a few seconds. Block these sites.
  • Pick up Trojans immediately: The quickest response to these real threats is definitely the best.
  • Update daily: This is absolutely necessary. Huge numbers of viruses are present online, and new ones are coming onstream rapidly.
  • Provide a good, thorough deep scan of all systems: These can be time consuming, but they’re worth it.

Local Network issues

If you’re running a local area network (LAN) like a small business, one Trojan or virus can take out the whole network. This is as expensive and dangerous as it sounds. Managed IT services are a good option in this situation, because these services provide round the clock support, backups, and ensure currency of virus protection.