NFIB

Protecting Against Email Contamination
04/ 15/ 2002


It's a sad fact today that some individuals go out of their way to create computer viruses and inflict them on unsuspecting users. Many of these viruses can disrupt functioning of your computer, causing you to lose files and, in the worse case scenario, crash your hard drive. How do viruses spread from one computer to another? Unfortunately, mostly viruses spread via e-mail, both internally within a company and externally through the Internet. In today's Workshop, contributor Jeff Moses gives a few basic tips on safeguarding yourself from e-mail contamination.

-- Don't count on service providers to screen e-mails for viruses. Any e-mail you get through the Internet could possibly contain a virus or Trojan Horse (another common type of virus that opens when dragged into an application).

-- If you receive an e-mail that is straight text only, with no attachments, there is little likelihood that it contains a virus. The problem is in attachments. The good news, however, is that most of the time attachments have to be opened to be of danger.

-- Any of the common virus protection software allows you to scan e-mail (and attachments) for viruses. Brands such as Virex, Norton AnitVirus, and others usually cost less than $65, and are well worth the price. Such software offers a variety of methods for scanning for viruses on hard drives, floppy disks, Zip disks, and incoming e-mail.

-- Once you purchase virus-protection software, you'll need to continually upgrade it to protect against newly developed viruses. After purchase, you can download updated versions from the Web sites of the software producer. This service is usually provided at a small extra charge, and directions for downloading are provided in the software package when purchased.

-- Once you've installed virus-protection software on your hard drive, it's good to scan the entire hard drive regularly. Also, set the virus software so that it automatically scans any e-mail attachments, floppies, Zip discs, etc., before opening.

-- When a virus infects the computers of a company, it can be very hard to eliminate. Several years ago, a company I worked with had more than 300 computers, and when a Word macro virus came into the network, it eventually infected almost every computer. Even months later, the virus would crop up once in a while unexpectedly. For this reason, companies as well as individuals need to pay close attention to virus protection. It's a major security issue and should be dealt with seriously.

workshop.technology.thu
3.4.1999

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