Aimee Kelly

SLM 521

Spring 2004

Virus Tips Sheet

What is a Virus?

· Man-made.

· Uninvited.

· Program or piece of code.

· Often causes a problem o a negative event.

· Often disguised as games or other desirables.

Other Related Terms

· Worm

1. Live in active computer memory.

2. Duplicate themselves.

3. May send themselves to other computers.

· Trojan Horse

1. Malicious program.

2. Pretends to be a normal program.

3. Purposely does something the user does not expect.

4. Not a virus - does not duplicate.

5. Can be as destructive as a virus.

Virus Prevention

· Do not open e-mail from unknown senders.

· Do not open attachments unless you recognize them.

· Do not open junk mail. Delete it.

· Do not download files from unknown sources.

· Update anti-virus software regularly.

· Back up your files regularly.

Recognizing Virus Hoaxes

· Send this to everyone you know!

· Technical sounding language.

· Credibility by association with a known name.

· No contact information.

Keep in mind, not everything that says it is a virus, is a virus. We should not always be worried but we should use caution.