9
Computer Viruses
Avoiding Computer Viruses
A computer virus is a program. It gets installed on your system
without you being aware of it, and can do anything from displaying
strange messages to destroying your data and other programs. A
virus can enter your system via a floppy diskette or network. Taking
the following precautions are normally sufficient to protect against
having a virus invade your system.
•
Write protect the master copies of your programs and data files.
•
Never open data files or run programs of unknown origin.
•
Use a commercially available virus checker to check new
programs, and periodically check your system for virus
contamination.
Use the latest version of a commercially available virus
checker to check your system.
An immediate virus check is recommended in the following cases.
•
Check your system each time you start up your computer.
•
Check any data file or program you received on a floppy diskette or
other external media, over a network, from a BBS or the Internet,
via e-mail, etc. before opening the file or running the program.