What is a computer virus and how is it transmitted? What can you do to protect your computer?

     The computer virus will make the computer sick. It installs itself on your computer and affects the performance of the computer. The effects of the infection range from mild to total catastrophe. The virus was named in 1983, and they just get bigger and better. The group name for the virus is malware. This is an umbrella term for what outsiders use to interfere with normal workings of your computer. When you hear terms, such as, virus/Trojan/worm/etc., you are hearing about malware. The mission of malware is to get information, and return it to its creator.
     Early on, the virus was transmitted via floppy disks, CDs, and the USB drive. You had to bring the virus to your computer. Now, with the wide-spread use of electronic e-mail, there is another outlet for transmitting the computer malware; an attachment. The most I understand about the virus is that is rewrites computer code on the computer it infects. Typically, the virus is still transmitted most often via external media. This is the reason most schools will not allow students to use any personal software, or media, on school computers.
     The Trojan malware is similar to the Trojan horse of mythology; remember Helen of Troy who was kidnapped by Paris? Well, the soldiers entered the city in a giant wooden horse, and when night fell, the soldiers snuck out and attacked. That is similar to the working of the malware. This Trojan typically arrives via e-mail as an attachment. Once the receiver opens the attachment, it invades the computer system. One big difference, it does not need to wait until night to attack. Similar to the Trojan is the worm. It too arrives via e-mail, but it can “worm” into your system without your help. Once on your computer, it duplicates itself. When it does that, it sends out all kinds of messages to people with whom you have communicated.
     What can you do – USE AN ANTIVIRUS PROGRAM. Yes, the antivirus program will scan your computer and destroy the vermin. The biggest problem with destroying the malware is that it changes so frequently, it is difficult for the antivirus software to keep up with the viruses. So, it is important to scan often, and keep the software up-to-date to protect your computers from outside invasions.