COMPUTERS Viruses, worms: Don't be a victim

Anti-virus software is next to useless if it's not kept up-to-date.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Local experts advise buying and updating anti-virus software -- and not opening suspicious e-mail attachments -- to avoid becoming a victim of computer viruses.
"It's a huge problem, and it's growing. This last round of viruses is probably the worst that we've ever seen," said Dave Wilkeson, chief of technology at Cboss, a Boardman-based Internet service provider and Internet applications developer.
In a 24-hour period Thursday and Friday, Cboss contained about 70,000 e-mails, preventing them from reaching its clients, he said. Cboss uses virus scanning and seven types of filtering to protect its clients, he said.
Considerable recent attention has been focused on e-mail viruses, such as one called Sobig.
"Attachments can actively go out and cause a virus immediately. If you don't recognize it, or if it doesn't look right, you should never, never open an attachment," Wilkeson said.
Can be destructive
Aside from being a nuisance, viruses and worms can be destructive, he said. "The payloads that are in viruses can do anything. They could erase your computer. They could reformat your computer. They could go look for data and send that data off to other people," he said, referring to credit card and Social Security numbers.
"People will install the anti-virus software [such as McAfee or Norton] every time there's a big problem like this one, and then they don't bother to do anything with it, and that's the problem," he said. "If you don't keep it up to date, it's practically useless."
Wilkeson advised making sure one's computer is updated with patches provided by the publisher of the anti-virus software. If those are installed, "Your computer will be pretty well safe from flaws that would allow worms and things to take over," he explained.
Operation at YSU
Mark Welton, network security analyst at Youngstown State University, said the university has cut down on e-mail viruses in faculty and staff computers within the past year by installing filtering equipment.
Dormitory students, who arrived on campus over the weekend for the start of classes Monday, brought computers from home that had been infected by viruses. "We're working our way around with our help desk to clean their machines and get anti-virus in them," he said.
The university has a help desk on the fourth floor of Meshel Hall to provide advice to anyone in the university community who is having computer problems, including worms and viruses, he said.
"I would advise people, if they didn't ask for an attachment from somebody, not to open it. Scan it with some type of anti-virus first before opening the attachment," he said, referring to e-mail.
"Ninety-nine percent of attachments that people get that they didn't ask for are some type of worm or virus," he observed.
Typical cost
Anti-virus software for a home computer typically costs between $25 and $45 a year, including a year of updating, he said.
"For the most part, we really haven't had a lot of trouble," said Melanie Richmond, service manager for Microdoctor Inc., a Warren-based Internet service provider. She attributed that to the company's use of anti-virus software, updated patching and filters.
She added: "We can only do so much on our end. But if the customer doesn't have any virus protection and doesn't update their own computers, then they're still susceptible to the viruses that are going around. They need to do their part, too. It works a lot better when we both do our part."
"Don't open any e-mail if you're really not sure where it came from. Delete it. Get rid of it. Don't touch it," she advised. Computer viruses can also be gotten from some Web sites, she added.
Forecaster gets hit
One person who recently got hit with computer problems is Frank Marzullo of Boardman, weather forecaster at WFMJ-TV 21.
At home, a worm called Blaster was forcing the shutdown of his computer about 10 days ago.
"For a good week there, I couldn't do anything," he recalled. He cleaned off his computer with anti-virus software, then stayed off the Internet for two to three days.
"I'm just thankful it was my home computer, and I didn't have anything valuable there. I think it teaches you a lesson to constantly save things," he said. "Be aware. It happens to anybody."
At work, his computer was attacked for one day by the Sobig virus, but the attacks ended after a technician installed a filter, he said. During the attack, he said, he received about 25 Sobig e-mail messages.