Virus Essay

1. What is a Virus?
A computer virus is a program that can copy itself and infect a computer without the user knowing. Some viruses are made to damage the computer by damaging programs, deleting files, or reformatting the hard disk. Others are not designed to do any damage, but replicate themselves and perhaps make their presence known by displaying text, video, or audio messages. Even these benign viruses can create problems for the computer. They usually take up computer memory used by other programs. As a result, they often cause crazy behavior and can result in system crashes. Also many viruses are bug-ridden, and these bugs may lead to system crashes and data loss.

2. What is Anti-Virus Software?
Antivirus software is a computer program that trys to identify, stop and remove computer viruses and other malicious software like trojan horses.

Antivirus software usually uses two different techniques to accomplish this:
• Scanning files to look for viruses matching definitions in the virus dictionary
• Identifying suspicious behavior from any computer program which might show infection. Such analysis may include data captures, port monitoring and other methods.

3. Name 3 viruses and explain what they do
Trojan horse is a program that unlike a virus, contains or installs a malicious program (sometimes called the payload or 'trojan') while disguising itself as being something else. Trojan horses may appear to be useful or interesting programs to an unsuspecting user, but are harmful when executed.

Computer worm is a self-replicating computer program. It uses a network to send copies of itself to other computers in the network and it may do so without any user help. Unlike a virus, it doesn’t need to attach itself to another program.

Elk Cloner is the first known computer virus that has spread outside the computer system or lab where it was made. It was written around 1982 by a 15-year-old high school student named Rich Skrenta for Apple II systems. Elk Cloner spread by infecting the Apple II's operating system, stored on floppy disks. When the computer was booted from an infected floppy disk, a copy of the virus would start.

4. Identify some safe computing practices to prevent getting a virus
There are many safe comuter practises that can be used to minimize the risk of getting infected by a virus, the main thing you should do is to keep your anti virus software up to date to the latest patch. Another way you can prevent getting a virus is to scan any program that you download from the internet before you open it.