Many computer users adopt the ‘it will never happen to me’ policy, but there are a number of computer viruses out there just waiting to infect and destroy the information contained on their hard-drive. This is why companies invented anti-virus software, which is a program that automatically helps to detect the presence of viruses on a computer or in a file before it is opened.

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Anyone who spends a considerable amount of time surfing the internet, visiting unfamiliar websites or downloading photographs is at a higher risk for computer viruses than those who do not. Computer viruses are typically attached to word processing documents, computer programs and images which, if downloaded, may instantly affect the computer’s performance.

If a computer virus infects a computer, the owner may immediately lose everything in their computer and may be forced to use the factory restore disk. This CD, which is accompanied by most new computers, will restore the computer to it’s original factory settings.

Anti-virus software is quite affordable considering it’s wealth of use. Without it, computer users are at constant risk for computer viruses. Anti-virus software can generally be found at any computer manufacturer’s website, retail store’s electronic department or online at many retailers selling computers.

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Anyone who suspects that their computer may be infected with a virus should refrain from sending any e-mail messages or uploading photos to family or friends. Otherwise, the virus may spread to infect their computers as well.

Anti-virus software is available most commonly on a CD-Rom, but may also be downloaded from some manufacturers. By double clicking on the software, the anti-virus program will begin to perform a scan of your entire computer. As it progresses, it will give you an update on any potential located viruses or files that may be of concern. In addition, some anti-virus software will allow users to scan a single file before opening it. For example, if a computer user were to download an image but wanted to run a virus scan on it prior to opening the file, he/she could click on the anti-virus software and direct it toward the file in question. The anti-virus program would scan the file for potential viruses and will post the results immediately on the computer screen. This will allow the computer user to know which files are safe and which are not.

In today’s world, anti-virus software is to computers as Tylenol is to headaches. It’s both a preventative approach and a cure for certain ailments affecting a computer. If a user does not have anti-virus software pre-installed into their computer, it is recommended that they purchase a program immediately before logging on to the internet.

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Protecting your computer from a virus is getting harder and harder each day. While it may border on the paranoid, it goes without saying that you can’t leave your guard down for one second. Even corporate giant Microsoft has found its own systems compromised on more than one occasion.

Remember the “good old days”, before the advent of the Internet and downloadable programs? Life was simple then in terms of computer viruses. With the primary way in which a virus could be transmitted being limited to floppy disks, the ability to catch and eradicate the virus was a lot easier. By today’s standards, it used to take quite a while before a virus was able to infect a computer and slow down the system. The antivirus software of that time was typically able to identify and eradicate viruses before they caused too much damage. Additionally, computer users were pretty savvy on how to protect themselves in terms of scanning all floppy disks before copying them to our desktop.

The Internet helped change all that. The Internet provided a conduit by which viruses could move from host to host with lightening speed. No longer could a computer user just worry about floppy disks as points of entry, but they now had to worry about email, email attachments, peer-to-peer file sharing, instant messaging, and software downloads. Today’s viruses can attack through multiple entry points, spread without human intervention, and take full advantage of vulnerabilities within a system or program. With technology advancing everyday, and the convergence of computers with other mobile devices, the potential of new types of threats also increase.

Protecting Your Computer
Luckily, the advancement of antivirus software has kept pace with current virus threats. Antivirus software is essential to a computer’s ability to fend off viruses and other malicious programs. These products are designed to protect against the ability of a virus to enter a computer through email, web browsers, file servers and desktops. Additionally, these programs offer a centralized control feature that handle deployment, configuration and updating.
A computer user should remain diligent and follow a few simple steps to protect against the threat of a virus:

1. Evaluate your current computer security system.
With the threat of a new generation of viruses able to attack in a multitude of ways, the approach of having just one antivirus software version has become outdated. You need to be confident that you have protected all aspects of your computer system from the desktop to the network, and from the gateway to the server. Consider a more comprehensive security system which includes several features including antivirus, firewall, content filtering, and intrusion detection. This type of system will make it more difficult for the virus to penetrate your system.
2. Only install antivirus software created by a well-known, reputable company.
Because new viruses erupt daily, it is important that you regularly update your antivirus software. Become familiar with the software’s real-time scan feature and configure it to start automatically each time you boot your computer. This will protect your system by automatically checking your computer each time it is powered up.
3. Make it a habit to always scan all new programs or files no matter from where they originate.
4. Exercise caution when opening binary, Word, or Excel documents of unknown sources especially if they were received during an online chat or as an attachment to an email.
5. Perform regular backups in case your system is corrupted. It may be the only way to recover your data if infected.

Recommended Antivirus Software
There are numerous applications available to consumers. With a little research, you can pick the program that is right for you. Many programs provide a trial version which allows you to download the program and test its abilities. However, be aware that some anti-virus programs can be difficult to uninstall. As a precaution make sure to set up a System Restore point before installing.

Here are a few programs which typically receive high marks in terms of cost, effectiveness, ease of use, and customer service.

The Shield Pro 2005™ provides virus protection and hacker security through ongoing support and updates. When a virus breaks out, The Shield Pro 2005™ promises to provide a patch within 2-3 hours and a fix for the virus within 5 hours. You can set your computer to update viruses weekly and run a complete virus scan.

BitDefender 9 Standard provides antivirus protection, as well as Peer-2-Peer Applications protection, full email protection, and heuristics in a virtual environment. This provides a new security layer that keeps the operating system safe from unknown viruses by detecting malicious pieces of code for which signatures have not been released yet.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus Personal 5.0 program is simple to install and use. The user only needs to choose from three levels of protection. It allows updates as frequently as every hour while promising not to disrupt your computer. The program also offers a two-tier email protection feature and round-the-clock technical support.

PC-cillin Internet Security combines antivirus security and a personal firewall—for comprehensive protection against viruses, worms, Trojans, and hackers. It also detects and removes spyware and blocks spam. It even guards against identity theft by blocking phishing and pharming attacks.

AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition is a free downloadable antivirus program that has received high marks for its reliability. In the past, free downloadable antivirus programs have been viewed skeptically because of issues relating to its reliability. However, AVG from Grisoft, remains one of the best-known free anti-virus programs available. While AVG can not be installed on a server operating system and there is no technical support, it still makes a good choice for many home computer users. The best part is that since it is free, you can try it with no further obligation necessary.

technet: Understanding and Fighting Malware: Viruses, Spyware and Rootkits Event Overview Today’s Internet is fraught with peril in the form of undesirable and malicious software. These types of software continue to evolve new ways of propogating and ways of embedding themselves more deeply into the systems they infect. Join us for this webcast, presented from Tech·Ed 2005 in Orlando, Florida, and gain an understanding of their propagation methods, including buffer overflow exploits, how to detect them and how to prevent them. Get a first-hand look at rootkits, which are the sophisticated tools and techniques by which malware attempts to avoid and prevent detection. Presenter: Mark Russinovich, Chief Software Architect and Co-founder, Winternals Software, LP Mark is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and serves as senior contributing editor for Windows IT Pro magazine where he contributes to the Windows Power Tools column. He is also a frequent speaker at major industry conferences such as Microsoft Tech Ed, IT Forum, Windows IT Pro Magazine’s Connections and Redmond Magazine’s techmentor.

technet: Understanding and Fighting Malware: Viruses, Spyware and Rootkits Event Overview Today’s Internet is fraught with peril in the form of undesirable and malicious software. These types of software continue to evolve new ways of propogating and ways of embedding themselves more deeply into the systems they infect. Join us for this webcast, presented from Tech·Ed 2005 in Orlando, Florida, and gain an understanding of their propagation methods, including buffer overflow exploits, how to detect them and how to prevent them. Get a first-hand look at rootkits, which are the sophisticated tools and techniques by which malware attempts to avoid and prevent detection. Presenter: Mark Russinovich, Chief Software Architect and Co-founder, Winternals Software, LP Mark is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and serves as senior contributing editor for Windows IT Pro magazine where he contributes to the Windows Power Tools column. He is also a frequent speaker at major industry conferences such as Microsoft Tech Ed, IT Forum, Windows IT Pro Magazine’s Connections and Redmond Magazine’s techmentor.

technet: Understanding and Fighting Malware: Viruses, Spyware and Rootkits Event Overview Today’s Internet is fraught with peril in the form of undesirable and malicious software. These types of software continue to evolve new ways of propogating and ways of embedding themselves more deeply into the systems they infect. Join us for this webcast, presented from Tech·Ed 2005 in Orlando, Florida, and gain an understanding of their propagation methods, including buffer overflow exploits, how to detect them and how to prevent them. Get a first-hand look at rootkits, which are the sophisticated tools and techniques by which malware attempts to avoid and prevent detection. Presenter: Mark Russinovich, Chief Software Architect and Co-founder, Winternals Software, LP Mark is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and serves as senior contributing editor for Windows IT Pro magazine where he contributes to the Windows Power Tools column. He is also a frequent speaker at major industry conferences such as Microsoft Tech Ed, IT Forum, Windows IT Pro Magazine’s Connections and Redmond Magazine’s techmentor.

technet: Understanding and Fighting Malware: Viruses, Spyware and Rootkits Event Overview Today’s Internet is fraught with peril in the form of undesirable and malicious software. These types of software continue to evolve new ways of propogating and ways of embedding themselves more deeply into the systems they infect. Join us for this webcast, presented from Tech·Ed 2005 in Orlando, Florida, and gain an understanding of their propagation methods, including buffer overflow exploits, how to detect them and how to prevent them. Get a first-hand look at rootkits, which are the sophisticated tools and techniques by which malware attempts to avoid and prevent detection. Presenter: Mark Russinovich, Chief Software Architect and Co-founder, Winternals Software, LP Mark is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) and serves as senior contributing editor for Windows IT Pro magazine where he contributes to the Windows Power Tools column. He is also a frequent speaker at major industry conferences such as Microsoft Tech Ed, IT Forum, Windows IT Pro Magazine’s Connections and Redmond Magazine’s techmentor.