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Computer Viruses: Past, Present And Future - School Essays

Computer Viruses: Past, Present And Future

In our health-conscious society, viruses of any type are an enemy. Computer
viruses are especially pernicious. They can and do strike any unprotected
computer system, with results that range from merely annoying to the disastrous,
time-consuming and expensive loss of software and data. And with corporations
increasingly using computers for enterprise-wide, business-critical computing,
the costs of virus-induced down-time are growing along with the threat from
viruses themselves. Concern is justified - but unbridled paranoia is not. Just
as proper diet, exercise and preventative health care can add years to your life,
prudent and cost-effective anti-virus strategies can minimize your ...

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(e.g., word processors or spreadsheets
application files) or to the boot sector of a disk. When an infected file is
activated - or executed - or when the computer is started from an infected disk,
the virus itself is also executed. Often, it lurks in computer memory, waiting
to infect the next program that is activated, or the next disk that is accessed.

What makes viruses dangerous is their ability to perform an event. While some
events are harmless (e.g. displaying a message on a certain date) and others
annoying (e.g., slowing performance or altering the screen display), some
viruses can be catastrophic by damaging files, destroying data and crashing
systems.

How Do Infections Spread?

Viruses come from a variety of sources. Because a virus is software code, it can
be transmitted along with any legitimate software that enters your environment:

ˇ In a 1991 study of major U.S. and Canadian computer users by the market
research firm Dataquest for the National Computer ...

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Other
viruses are more dangerous. They can continually modify or destroy data,
intercept input/output devices, overwrite files and reformat hard disks.

What Are The Symptoms Of Virus Infection?

Viruses remain free to proliferate only as long as they exist undetected.
Accordingly, the most common viruses give off no symptoms of their infection.
Anti-virus tools are necessary to identify these infections. However, many
viruses are flawed and do provide some tip-offs to their infection. Here are
some indications to watch for:

ˇ Changes in the length of programs
ˇ Changes in the file date or time stamp
ˇ Longer program load times
ˇ Slower system operation
ˇ Reduced memory or disk ...

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Computer Viruses: Past, Present And Future. (2008, April 16). Retrieved January 1, 2026, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Computer-Viruses-Past-Present-And-Future/82191

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PAPER DETAILS

Added: 4/16/2008 03:15:35 AM
Category: Computers
Type: Free Paper
Words: 4592
Pages: 17

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