By Mary Lynn Bushong /
1Computers are complicated, yet entertaining, tools that now seem to rule our lives. What do you do to keep from playing host to a virus, worm, or Trojan horse? How can you keep spammers or hackers from turning your computer into a zombie? You can do it by taking a few simple precautions.
2For starters, all computers should have some kind of anti-virus security software. You might think that a machine with no Internet access would be safe, but you would be wrong. Viruses can contaminate any software. Borrowing a program or getting a shareware disc can do it if the program or disc have been contaminated. On rare occasions, you can even get a virus from a commercially produced program.
3When you have chosen your anti-virus software, have it set up to check all of your files daily. You can set it to check automatically at the same time every day. Then you need to keep it current by checking for updates every two weeks or so. Software must be up-to-date to ensure that it can recognize recently created threats. There are new viruses and other threats created daily.
4Your anti-virus software is set up to check for three major groups of invasive programming that it can repair. The first group is viruses. A virus is a computer code that attaches itself to a host program. It's self-replicating and can damage your software, hardware, and all files. Most of them are spread through e-mail. Many times virus e-mails circulate, but it is important not to open one; it has come from an infected computer. Opening the message will install the virus on your hard drive. If your security software is up-to-date, it will probably warn you and isolate the infection.
5A worm is a sub-class of a virus. It automatically spreads itself from one computer to the next. Unlike a virus, it does not need a host program. It can tunnel into your system, making removal more difficult. This tunneling action allows it the possibility of several actions. It can replicate and send itself to everyone in your address book without you knowing it. It can cause your computer to run more slowly and eventually crash. It can also allow a third party to have access to your computer remotely. A spammer can make your computer send out junk mail without you even knowing about it until your server or your e-mail contacts complain.
6A Trojan horse is basically a program that appears to be helpful but causes damage. It can be part of free download programs on the Internet or be attached to fake software update e-mails that appear to be real. To be safe, don't download programs unless you trust the source and always update software from the manufacturer's official site. Do not open e-mail attachments unless you know the person sending it and you know what is inside.
7If you use Microsoft Windows, set it to download updates and patches automatically. These will close gaps in the programming that leave you open to attack.
8One other critical security method is the use of a firewall. It is estimated that an unprotected computer running Microsoft Windows can be found and hacked within twenty minutes of going online. If your computer is hacked, you can lose personal information like bank cards, passwords, credit cards, etc. One way hackers find other computers is by sending out a "ping." The open communication ports on an unprotected computer will answer back. One important job of a firewall is to close the ports so they don't respond, rendering your computer "invisible" to random pings.
9Firewall software protects you in other ways as well. If your computer becomes infected with a worm or a Trojan horse, it will attempt to access the Internet by itself. Firewall software will not allow it access, but it will notify you of any programs attempting to access the Internet. You will have to grant it permission to enable it to do so. You should instead deny it any access until such a time as you can clean it from your system.
10While surfing the web, be aware that you need to be concerned about other things as well. Many seemingly harmless programs can actually carry spyware or adware in disguise. Spyware will attempt to track all of your movements on the web; it will capture key strokes and send them on to the creator or sender of the program. It's very much like a Trojan horse.
11Adware collects information about where you browse for information and sends it back to advertisers. A sub-group of adware is scumware. It can change your websites to pornographic sites and generate traffic for the scumware advertiser.
12When you consider all the things that can go wrong, you might wonder if e-mail and Internet access are worth it. But by exercising reasonable care and keeping your programming and firewall up to date, you can avoid most of them.