Tech Talk

Beating the virus

Most of us catch a cold or flu at least once every year, leaving us feeling miserable for a while. However, we usually get over it and make a bid to prevent the next one by taking plenty of vitamins and trying to avoid people who are sick. The same applies to computer viruses. They make us miserable and prevention is better than cure! Here are some basic preventive measures.

Anti-virus software

The first step to prevent a computer virus is to have a good, up-to-date anti-virus package. There are lots of anti-virus software vendors, including a couple that have free versions, however you get what you pay for, so I recommend that you purchase a version rather than relying on the free edition. The market leaders at one point were Norton and McAfee, but now there are a myriad of different suppliers. Some of the best include AVG (pro version), NOD32, Kaspersky and Panda. It’s a personal choice really and it’s not important which one you use as long as you have one and it’s up to date!

Don’t be an administrator

It’s true to say PCs get lots of viruses, while Mac and Linux users don’t have to worry. One reason is that the Unix operating system (Mac OS is based on Unix) is very stable. Another reason is that ordinary users are not administrators, i.e. can install programs or generally change anything on the system. You will need one administrator account on your PC, however set up user accounts that are not administrators for everyday use. If you open a document with a virus it’s less likely to be effective because it can’t run! You can set up new user accounts in the control panel.

Keep up to date

The next point is to keep your PC up to date, i.e. run Windows Update regularly.  Most viruses attack vulnerabilities in Windows that have already been fixed. Keep updated!

Don’t open that email!

Finally, if you don’t know who that email is from or you think it looks suspicious, don’t open it! The same applies to documents or items downloaded from the Web. You have to trust the origin. If in doubt, delete it!

What to do if infected?

There are two easy things to try if you have an infection. If you can log in to the PC then download and run Malware Bytes – a brilliant free program available on www.malwarebytes.org. Download, update and run it. Remove anything it finds. If that doesn’t work, try a System Restore. Reboot into safe mode (hit F8 repeatedly on start up and select Safe Mode). If all else fails, seek professional help!

Eamon is a director with Command IT, a Galway based IT services company. See www.commandit.ie. If you have any questions for Eamon or topics you would like to see featured, email techtalk@galwayindependent.com.