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Recommendations that can help you avoid getting a virus, and steps that you can take once you think you have a virus
- If you get an email with an attachment, make sure that you need to open it. If you are not sure, do not open the attachment.
- If you suspect you have a virus that you got from email, disconnect your computer from the network. This will help prevent other computers from getting infected. If you have a dialup connection, you should disconnect the phone line from the modem or wall jack. This is the only way to insure that you are not connected to the Internet. Some viruses can actually dial out using your modem without you knowing about it. There have been cases where the virus will run up huge phone bills by calling overseas.
- Purchase a virus protection program. If you already own such a program, make sure that you update it often. New viruses are released on a daily basis. It is very important that you keep your virus program updated, so the program will have the best chance of detecting the newest viruses.
- Keep your floppy disks write protected. This is a very good habit that will help prevent viruses from spreading by floppy disks. It is a common myth that viruses do not spread by files anymore, but we can attest to the fact that it still happens. When you do want to write to floppy, it is a simple matter to unprotect it, write your files to the floppy disk, then write protect it again.
- Do not download files from an unknown or untrustworthy source. Every time you download a file from the Internet, you risk virus infection. The best thing you can do is not download files at all, but if you do download files, it is generally accepted that some of the major download sites are "safer". There are some sites that check all files for viruses before they make them available for download. However, this is still no guarantee that it will be virus free.
- If you think you have a virus, you must have a technician take a look at your machine straight away. Sometimes a virus cannot be found or cleaned by a virus program; only a trained technician will know what to do in such cases. If you do not attend to the problem your machine will almost certainly risk further damage.
- Do not panic. You may do more damage than the virus would have if you act too quickly without thinking things through. The first thing you can do if you panic is turn your machine off by the proper method that your Operating system vendor has given you.
* Net Solutions is not responsible for this information, or how you use this information.