Virus Information
As with viruses that infect people, computer
viruses are easier to catch than to get rid of, and prevention
is usually far simpler than the cure. But following the basic
rules should assist you to minimise the chances of
having your computer infected, and minimise the losses should
your computer be infected.
Email Virus Avoidance Checklist
-
Make sure your OS, browser and email software are current
and
up-to-date. If you don’t have IT staff to take care
of this for you,
make sure you check at least once a week that there aren’t
new
updates or security fixes for your software.
-
Make sure you have anti-virus software installed, operating
and
up-to-date. If you don’t have IT staff to take
care of this for you,
make sure you check for new updates every single day.
If you
need help updating your anti-virus program or removing
a virus
please let us know. Note: You can purchase a copy of
Norton's Anti-Virus 2002 for $130 inc GST from us
-
Make sure you have a personal firewall or that your
network has
its own firewall. There are many good products available
for
free.
-
NEVER, NEVER open unsolicited email attachments even
if you
know the sender. If you’re in any doubt, email
the sender and get
confirmation that it was actually them who sent the
file and ask
them to confirm the filename and its contents.
-
Set your Windows or mail program options to show the
full name of email attachments. This reduces the risk of
an
executable file masquerading as text or a document.
-
Don’t use email to share joke files with friends
or workmates.
This practice makes it very easy to mistake a virus
for just another funny program or animation.
-
Do not use attachments when plain emails will do. Don’t
use MS
Word or other attachments in your email if the same
information can be easily conveyed by including the details
in the
body of your message as plain text.
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