Using Anti-virus Software

A SeniorNet Workshop

SeniorNet is a service program of the Lutheran Service Society of Western Pennsylvania

What is a computer virus?

A computer virus is simply a program or piece of a program that is loaded onto your computer and runs against your wishes.

Viruses are designed to cause harm to your operating system, programs and/or personal files & folders.

All computer viruses are man-made.

How does a virus harm my computer? Once a virus infects your machine, it rapidly

makes copies of itself.

These copies quickly use all the available system resources and will dramatically slow down and may eventually take over the system or targeted applications or stop the machine from running.

How are viruses spread?

Viruses are generally spread through e-mail, e-mail attachments and “removable media” such as floppy disks or CD-RWs.

Some viruses copy the addresses in your e-mail address book and pass the virus on to everyone listed there.

What other kinds of “bad” programs can infect my computer? In addition to viruses, computers can be

infected by worms and trojan horses. Taken together, these malicious programs are often called malware.

How can I protect my computer against viruses? Use common sense precautions with e-mail

Never open e-mail unless you know the sender. Double-check if you’re not sure.

Scan all e-mail attachments with anti-virus software before you open.

Scan all “removable media” with you’re a-v software before opening.

Install and keep up-to-date anti-virus software on your machine

How does anti-virus software protect my computer?

Anti-virus programs search your computer’s hard drive for viruses and removes any it finds.

It also blocks viruses trying to enter your machine via e-mail, downloads from the Internet and removable media.

Once I install anti-virus software on my computer am I completely protected?

No, anti-virus software has to be periodically updated to protect your computer against new viruses.

In addition, there are other routes commonly called “holes” that can be used to infect your computer.

“Holes” are created unintentionally by design flaws in the OS or programs running on the OS.

“Holes” require “patches”or updates from the OS manufacturer and other lines of protection such as firewalls.

How do I get the updates? Updates are a service provided by the software manufacturer when

you buy the anti-virus program.

Updates of anti-virus definitions can be auto-scheduled.

Updates of the entire a-v program must be downloaded manually – at least once a week.

Updates are downloaded from the Internet. Therefore, you must have an Internet connection in order to get anti-virus updates.

The length of the subscription service for updates varies. Be sure to check on the duration of this service when you purchase a new computer or new anti-virus software.

Which brand of anti-virus software does SeniorNet recommend? SeniorNet does not endorse any specific

brand of anti-virus software.

There are dozens of companies that manufacture excellent anti-virus software. The two brands most commonly used are: McAfee Norton

How much does anti-virus software cost?

Norton Anti-virus 2004 and McAfee Viruscan 8.0 currently costs $40 to $50.

The list price is always discounted with rebates bringing the cost down to around $25 or less

How can I load anti-virus software on my computer?

CD-ROM

Internet Download

What web addresses do I use if I want to purchase anti-virus software on the Internet?

Norton’s website is www.symantec.com

McAfee’s website is www.mcafee.com

Workshop Practice Exercise #1

Go to the Norton and McAfee websites

Find the section on their anti-virus software (Norton Anti-virus 2004 & McAfee Viruscan 8.0)

Price the download

Identify the system requirements

Once I obtain the software, how do I install it on my computer? For the Internet version simply follow the instruction wizard that

comes with the downloaded program

For the off-the-shelf version, place the disk in your CD-ROM drive and follow the instructions.

Unless you have specific reasons to do otherwise, accept all the manufacturer’s “recommendations” when loading the program.

Once you have successfully installed the a-v software, immediately go online to the a-v manufacturer’s website and manually update the software. This step will ensure your PC has the most current level of anti-virus protection.

Once installed, how do I find the program?

You can access the program from Start menu System tray

You can also create a desktop shortcut to the program

Workshop Practice Exercise #2

Open the Norton Anti-virus program on the PC nearest you, using the Start menu and the icon in the system tray.

Create a desktop shortcut to the Norton Anti-virus program.

Norton Anti-virus Windows

Status window

Scan for viruses window

Reports window

How do I run Live Update with Norton Anti-virus software?

Select Live Update from the Status window and follow the instructions with the Live Update wizard.

Note to AOL subscribers: You must connect to the Internet through AOL before your

attempt to run Live Update. Otherwise you will not be able to connect with the a-v manufacturer’s website.

How do I run a full computer scan with Norton Anti-virus software? Open the Scan for Viruses window

Double-click Scan my computer

Full system scans should be run at least once a week as part of your routine maintenance

Can I scan parts of my hard drive instead of the whole thing? Yes, you can scan individual drives, files and

folders as follows: Open the Scan for viruses window Select the drive, file or folder you want to scan Select Open Review the scan report

Can I scan removable media such as floppy disks and CDs?

Yes, just follow these steps:

Insert the media in the appropriate drive. For example, insert a 3.5 in. floppy in Drive (A:)

Select Scan for viruses

Select: Scan all removable drives Scan all floppy disks Scan drives

If you make this select, be sure to un-check Drive (C:)

Can I scan individual files & folders? Yes! There are several ways to do this:

If the file or folder is already stored on your PC’s hard drive simple right-click the target file or folder and select Scan with Norton Antivirus from the pop-up menu.

If the file is an e-mail attachment: Left-click 2x to open the attachment from your mailbox Select Save it to disk Save in My Documents or on the PC Desktop Right-click the target file or folder Select Scan with Norton Antivirus from the pop-up menu

How do I change the settings for my Norton Anti-virus software? From the any window, select the Options

button This select opens a window called Norton

AntiVirus Options You can make changes to the program from

this window. NOTE: Unless you have a good reason to do

otherwise, we urge you to enable all the manufacturer’s recommended settings.

Workshop Practice Exercise #3

Open Norton Anti-virus software

Run a Live Update for your machine

Scan the files on the floppy disk provided

Open the Options window to review the enabled options

What happens if I get a virus? If Norton detects a virus it will:

Block it Quarantine it Delete it

You may have to decide what action to take. If in doubt, follow their recommendation.

How do I get rid of quarantined items? Open Norton Anti-virus program Select Reports Select Quarantined Items View Report Highlight the items you want to delete Select Delete

How can I get more information on anti-virus software programs? Norton and McAfee websites constantly bring

you up-to-date news on virus threats.

In addition both websites feature customer knowledge bases and FAQs to help you answer your questions.

Summary

If you use the Internet and e-mail, you computer must have anti-virus software installed and up-to-dated.

Scan all e-mail attachment and shared files/folders with your anti-virus software before you open.

Perform a full system scan with your anti-virus software once a week.

Delete or quarantine all viruses you encounter.