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On rare occasion, mail servers at Burlington Telecom or any ISP can come under
attack from malicious software operating on customer computers. The attacks can be so strong that
a system administrator may need to turn off the Internet accounts causing the problem until the malicious
software is removed. Let’s take the time to review some of the threats that exist on the Internet, and to discuss some
of the steps you can take to protect your computer.
A COMPUTER VIRUS is a piece of software code that replicates by inserting itself into another program;
when the host program is run, additional copies of the virus are created, which helps the virus spread
from machine to machine. There are a number of specialized viruses that can cause damage to your computer or your network.
An E-MAIL VIRUS is a piece of malicious code that attaches itself to an e-mail message; when opened,
it typically will read your address book and e-mail itself to everyone listed. It does the same thing on each
recipient's computer, and so on. A single e-mail virus can result in millions of false messages being sent.
A TROJAN HORSE is a piece of code that pretends to be one thing (a photo or a music file) but is in fact
designed to cause some type of damage (such as completely erasing your hard drive).
A WORM is a type of virus that is specifically designed to replicate across computer networks. The code in a
software worm is designed to seek out security flaws and reproduce by exploiting those flaws.
Another class of software that is causing problems is SPYWARE. A spyware program is a small program that lurks on
your hard drive and gathers information about your computer activity (particularly web surfing). The spyware program
will send the information back to the company or person who released it.
PROTECTIVE MEASURES: The single most important thing you should do is install an ANTI-VIRUS PROGRAM.
There are a number of good commercial programs out there, including Norton and McAfee, which cost about $40 each.
There is also a good free program called Antivir (http://www.free-av.com/). In addition to installing antivirus software,
it is also important to make sure that the virus definitions are up-to-date. Most antiviral software companies update their
definitions (the electronic signatures of viruses) each week.
When you install the anti-virus software, make sure that it is set up to scan all programs, e-mails, and other
Web activity. Malicious programmers are a relentlessly creative bunch, and you want to protect yourself from as wide an
array of threats as possible.
Second, install an anti-spyware program. There is no clear software leader in this category, but there is a good online
resource to help you choose a program: The Anti-Spyware Guide (http://www.firewallguide.com/spyware.htm). Be careful of
programs that say that they are anti-spyware, but are actually Trojan horses that install hidden programs.
Lastly, make sure that you have a FIREWALL running on your computer. A firewall is designed to blocked unauthorized access
from outside your computer, and to track programs on your computer that try to access the Internet. The newer releases
of Windows XP have a firewall built in, and that works reasonably well. Another alternative that is well-regarded is
ZoneAlarm (http://www.zonealarm.com); again, the program is free for individual users.
By taking a few basic precautions, you can dramatically increase the security of your computer and your data.
Contributed by Fred Lane, Burlington Telecom HelpDesk
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