A computer virus is some sort of malicious code that replicates itself and moves from computer to another one through a network. They spread just like an epidemic and infect other computers causing loss of data and sluggish performance.
There are numerous ways for viruses gain access to your personal machine some that are downloading infected files and attachments from the web, installing pirated and cracked programs, storage devices like flash drives, external hard drives and CD/DVD. These are simply a few ways a computer is often infected by a virus.
Any time a virus infects a computer it isn't just the computer that's infected that may be at risk, all the other computers that are connected on same network is usually infected. The danger increases manifold if for example the computers do not have an updated antivirus installed.
Many of the latest anti viruses have an active shield program included in it. These shields monitor the incoming connections to your laptop or computer and scan them to detect any malicious code that may try to pass through and infect the computer. Additionally they scan the websites you visit by monitoring the cookies and files them to install on your personal machine. But this works only if the antivirus is updated and able to tackle any viruses.
If after all of this your personal machine does have the misfortune of being infected by a virus you can go and get rid of it.You might want to run a complete virus scan on your pc and not disturb it; it anyways runs in the background. Once the scan is done the antivirus would present a report and let you know if your laptop or computer is infected. If it is you can choose to quarantine the virus or delete it entirely. Quarantine means to isolate the file, because there is a possibility that any other program requires the file to run.You may decide to completely delete the file that is certainly infected by the virus.
However you will find there's new generation of viruses that can escape being detected even by an updated antivirus. These viruses pretend to be a file which is part of the operating system. These viruses may be detected by runningwhat is known a boot time scan. A boot time scan runs prior to os loads and thus can detect these viruses and delete them.
If these steps fail you should back up your important data and reformat the computer involving totally wiping out the hard drive and reinstalling your operating system. Once this is achieved the first program that you ought to install is the antivirus then update both the operating system and the Antivirus. Be sure you scan the files you have backed up before transferring it back to your hard drive.
There are numerous ways for viruses gain access to your personal machine some that are downloading infected files and attachments from the web, installing pirated and cracked programs, storage devices like flash drives, external hard drives and CD/DVD. These are simply a few ways a computer is often infected by a virus.
Any time a virus infects a computer it isn't just the computer that's infected that may be at risk, all the other computers that are connected on same network is usually infected. The danger increases manifold if for example the computers do not have an updated antivirus installed.
Many of the latest anti viruses have an active shield program included in it. These shields monitor the incoming connections to your laptop or computer and scan them to detect any malicious code that may try to pass through and infect the computer. Additionally they scan the websites you visit by monitoring the cookies and files them to install on your personal machine. But this works only if the antivirus is updated and able to tackle any viruses.
If after all of this your personal machine does have the misfortune of being infected by a virus you can go and get rid of it.You might want to run a complete virus scan on your pc and not disturb it; it anyways runs in the background. Once the scan is done the antivirus would present a report and let you know if your laptop or computer is infected. If it is you can choose to quarantine the virus or delete it entirely. Quarantine means to isolate the file, because there is a possibility that any other program requires the file to run.You may decide to completely delete the file that is certainly infected by the virus.
However you will find there's new generation of viruses that can escape being detected even by an updated antivirus. These viruses pretend to be a file which is part of the operating system. These viruses may be detected by runningwhat is known a boot time scan. A boot time scan runs prior to os loads and thus can detect these viruses and delete them.
If these steps fail you should back up your important data and reformat the computer involving totally wiping out the hard drive and reinstalling your operating system. Once this is achieved the first program that you ought to install is the antivirus then update both the operating system and the Antivirus. Be sure you scan the files you have backed up before transferring it back to your hard drive.
Alex is an Internetwork security expert. If you suspect your computer is infected learn how to Get rid of virus Also Read his articles about how you can easily Get rid of virus for free.