Reality Check

I know that the horro e-mail business disturbed everyone mightily, but lets put a rein on our panic, folks.

First, the horro was NOT a virus. It was a hostile Java application, that you could disable by simply not running Java on your computer. Should you do so permanantly? I'm not, because lots of the nice features at sites that I enjoy run on Java. If you don't know how to stop an application on your computer using CTRL+ALT+DEL then try it a few times. You need to know this, regardless of if you ever encounter another Java bomb.

Secondly, about receiving worms and viruses in your e-mail. How many are running virus protection softwear? If your'e not, then you should be cited for driving on the internet without a license. :) It's not a smart thing to do. There are plenty of inexpensive programs out there, even free ones. There's no excuse! Go and do it! Now!

OK, how many that have viral protection softwear have the program automatically scan all of your e-mail before you download it? If not, then set it up to do that! I used Norton, but I switched to McAffee because their interface was a lot easier to set the program up to do this, plus I just think it works better. You can also set up a separate "download folder" in which to save the attachments, and then use your softwear to scan it before you open it. Some programs only let you do it that way. If your e-mail prgram is Outlook Express, then turn off the preview pane,so that you can scan your e-mail without runing any programs embedded into it.

If you scan your e-mail, it's highly unlikely that someone can send you a worm or a virus---if you update your virus lists regularly from the manufacturer. That's very important. There are a lot of smart bad guys out there with nothing beter to do than to sit around and make a "neat little program" that is destructive in nature. That means you need to keep on top of the new ones. Set your softwear to automatically connect to the internet and download new virus definiton files at least twice a week. Even if you are using a 28.8 modem, and have to pay your ISP by the minute, this is money and time well spent. Your softwear can be the most expensive available, but unless it is updated, it will be useless against a new virus.

Which brings me to virus warnings. 99% of the time, those virus warnings that circulate through e-mail and newslists, are hoaxes. 99%. I'm not kidding. The bad guys have created a climate of fear, so that these rumors get spread faster, and all they do is sit back and laugh because they didn't even have to do any programming to cause a panic. If you receive a virus warning, the first thing you should do is check it out at one of the many hoax detection sites that abound on the internet. I use http://www.datafellows.fi/virus-info/hoax/ for mine, because it has an easy key word search. The softwear manufacturer of your virus protection should also maintain a informational site about the latest viral threats. If you don't see that virus on there that you were just warned about, then chances are it's a hoax.

Now, on the off chance that one of these warnings is one of the 1% that are true, what do you do? Nothing! You shouldn't have to. If you've installed the viral protection softwear and are updating it regularly, your computer should be protected. Does that mean that you will never get a virus or worm? Of course not, but it sure lessens the chances.

The same old precautions should still be practiced, even with the softwear,though. If you receive an e-mail from someone you don't know that has an attachment to it, don't open it. And, as a courtesy, in this day and age, all parties should send a "attachment notification" e-mail to someone you are sending something to, before you send it. If you want to send pics of the new grandbaby to Aunt Joan, just send one e-mail stating, "Aunt Joan, look for an e-mail with the baby pics attached", and then in the next e-mail, send it titled, "Aunt Joan, here are the baby pics". That way both parties are doing the most possible to communicate what is being sent and received, and Aunt Joan doesn't delete the pics because she is scared to open the file.

If you practise all of these precautions, then you will most likely be safe. I've been online for 5 years, and have never, ever, had a single problem. It's all about learning what these machines can do if you ask them to. If you have viral protection softwear, but don't configure it right, then it does you no good. Don't let someone else in your household bear the burden of being the "computer expert". If you learn no other thing about the computer, learn about your viral softwear. And don't panic! :) If my 77 year old mother can figure out how to do this, anyone can!

Oh yeah! Don't blame all of your computer weirdness on it being infected with a virus. Windows is just wonky sometimes, and refuses to work. That doesn't mean you have a virus, it just means that you have Windows. If you purchased the most stable motherboard, video card, sound card, and chip combination out there, Windows sometimes will still be goofy. Throw salt over your shoulder, rub your right hand clockwise on your head, and your left hand counterclockwise on your stomach, make the sign of the evil eye, and reboot. If you've still got a problem, then it's still most likely to be Windows, rather than a virus, but run virus scan anyway, and follow the directions if it finds an infection.