Antivirus And You

By Dave Saltonstall-16825

With a host of virus, mal-ware and spy-ware affecting computer systems worldwide, anti-virus tools are a critical component for PC users today. A computer virus attacks systems, affecting system performance, breaches security mechanisms and can wreck havoc on not only computers but entire networks. They damage files, applications and operating systems. Before the Internet arrived, computer viruses were spread through use of affected floppy disks. Now they can be spread through emails, documents or simply through networks. The nature of infection that they cause varies, depending on its nature.

Computer viruses can be classified into three main categories - virus that affects the boot sector of a computer, viruses that spread through macros and those that infect files. However, viruses are not the only ones affecting computer systems. There are other applications that can cause considerable damage. Examples include worms, adware, spyware, dialers, Trojans, etc.


They are executables that affect your system performance, can collect sensitive data and cause monetary damage or reputation loss.

Antivirus software helps to identify and remove all malicious applications including but not limited to viruses. They use scanning engines that can identify viruses by identifying the unique string of bytes that make up their composition. Most

antivirus tools also study patterns to compare them with known traits of viruses. In case of infections, they are able to repair the files and in cases where repair is not feasible, they can quarantine the files or offer the option to delete the infected files from the system.

Your chosen antivirus solution should be able to offer you protection, at the minimum, from viruses that affect the boot sector, macro viruses, Trojans, worms and viruses that affect files. The other factors that might influence your decision of an antivirus solution are the speed and accuracy of the application and the usability.
These differ widely amongst vendors and you can do a feature by feature comparison before deciding on the application.

In the end, do remember that it pays to keep your antivirus software updated. With each passing day, more viruses are being created and released onto the computer networks. Most antivirus application developers keep researching and updating their application with the release of any known new virus or malware. Antivirus applications offer automatic updates or prompts whenever a new patch is available. It is advisable to avail the menu based definition updates or to opt-in for the updates whenever prompted to do so. Being on the safe side helps and it does when it concerns critical data that rests on your computer systems.

There are many antivirus software makers on the internet, so it is best to use one you can trust, consult the expertise at k7-computing.com before purchasing and they will direct you to a trustworthy, recommended product which suits your needs and price!