Asus L84L L8400 F/L Software Installation Guide (English) - Page 87

PC-cillin How Viruses Spread There are many ways for a virus to enter your system: • Email attachments • World Wide Web (WWW) sites • FTP traffic from the Internet (file downloads) • Shared network files & network traffic in general • Demonstration software • Pirated software • Shrink-wrapped, production programs (rare) • Computer labs • Electronic bulletin boards (BBS) • Diskette swapping (using other people's diskettes for carrying data and programs back and forth) The most likely virus entry points are email, Internet and network connections, floppy disk drives, and modems or other serial or parallel port connections. In today's increasingly interconnected workplace (Internet, intranet, shared drives, removable drives, and email), virus outbreaks now can spread faster and wider than ever before. Virus Writers In the typical scenario, it is an individual, working alone, who writes a virus program and then introduces it onto a single computer, network server, or the Internet. Why? Ego, revenge, sabotage, and basic disgruntlement have all been cited as motivations. Recently, do-it-yourself "virus kits" have been popping up on the Internet, and macro scripts are becoming both easier to learn and more powerful, putting the capacity to engineer viruses in the hands of nearly everyone. In other words, no single, likely profile exits by which virus writers can be described or understood. So whatever the reason one may have for writing a virus, the important thing is to make certain your company is not victimized, that your data you are responsible for is safe, and that precious time is not wasted hunting down (and cleaning up after) viruses. 87