The AVG free edition anti-virus is the most common used anti-virus software or protection tool. AVG is enclosed with automatic updates whenever you turn on your computers. In fact, for as long as the product lives, the user of this protection tool will be privileged to make use of it. AVG Free is trouble-free to use and will not slow your system down (low system resource requirements). Special Features include automatic update functionality, AVG Resident Shield that provides real-time protection as files are opened and programs are run, free Virus Database Updates for the lifetime of the product, and AVG Virus Vault for safe handling of infected files.
In the passed few years, there has been computer viruses that took great effect on global economic growth. However, there are these viruses that have cause millions, worse, billions of dollars loss. Here are the top 10 most destructive computer viruses of all time according to techweb:
1. CIH (1998)
Estimated Damage: 20 to 80 million dollars worldwide, countless amounts of PC data destroyed
Unleashed from Taiwan in June of 1998
2. Melissa (1999)
Estimated Damage: 300 to 600 million dollars
3. ILOVEYOU (2000)
Estimated Damage: 10 to 15 billion dollars
4. Code Red (2001)
Estimated Damage: 2 billion and 600 million dollars (2.6B $)
5. SQL Slammer (2003
Estimated Damage: Because SQL Slammer erupted on a Saturday, the damage was low in dollars and cents. However, it hit 500,000 servers world wide and actually shut down South Korea’s online capacity for 12 hours.
6. Blaster (2003)
Estimated Damage: 2 to 10 billion dollars, hundreds of thousands of infected PCs
7. Sobig.F (2003)
Estimated Damage: 5 to 10 billion dollars, over 1 million PCs infected
8. Bagle (2004)
Estimated Damage: Tens of millions of dollars…and counting
9. MyDoom (2004)
Estimated Damage: At its peak, slowed global Internet performance by 10 percent and Web load times by up to 50 percent
10. Sasser (2004)
Estimated Damage: Tens of millions of dollars
The effect of computer virus is really serious because it can harm not only computers, same is true with the life of others.
Both spyware and a computer virus are forms of unwanted or malware (malicious software) that can be harmful and give nuisance to your computer. The difference is that spyware collects information without any notice or consent. Spyware will not actually harm or corrupt the data on your computer but as stated earlier, it can give nuisance because it takes control or your computer. Anti-virus programs or software cannot remove spyware, so there is still further study of some anti-virus developer to create an antivirus that also features anti-spyware. There is a lot of ways on how Spyware can be installed on your computer. One is via virus and another is by being secretly attached to the software that you want to install or download. Furthermore, spyware is a specific type of malware that collects information about you and your computer, without you knowing it. Meanwhile, virus is just a specific way of having spyware get into your computer and be secretly distributed via e-mail or instant messaging.
A firewall is like a guard that allows or prohibits intruders to the network. It has a control policy that indicates and dictates what should be denied and permitted to access the network in order to protect the network from any harm. It is a preventive measure and not completely the solution to viruses or any harmful things that can be acquired in the internet. It is designed to protect and not to heal infected data. Firewall is not able to do that. Unlike anti-virus software, it updates and scans the memory or programs when you reboot your computer. During the reboot, it can detect whether there are viruses, the location of the viruses and eventually cure it. Anti-virus software is designed for the purpose of healing and detecting harmful virus on your computer. In other words, even if the viruses had infected some parts of the data saved in your computer, it is still capable of adjusting allowing its features to cure the infected area. Compared to a firewall, it is designed only to protect and guard the network due to its control policy.
Virus is a threat that is contagious for it infects your files as well as other programs installed on your computer. A computer virus should be attached on top of other program or document in order to launch. Once it is running, it will now start the onset of infecting other programs or documents. Maybe a lot of computer users would ask about from whom or where does computer virus come from? Well sadly, it comes from computer users also. These people write the computer virus in which he or she is required to write the code, put it to a test to be assured that if it will infects a program, it will run and spreads properly. If the test is successful, that person will release the virus. There are various reasons as to why some people make computer viruses:
1. For them, making unusual things such as making computer virus gives them thrill or excitement to boast that he or she knows much about computer programs to the extent that he or she may channel energy in creating destructive viruses.
2. Fascination pushes a person to make a computer virus in the sense that when the virus is already released, he or she would sit back and enjoy the scenario as things blow up with somebody’s computer.
3. Curiosity also is one of the components as to why some people are interested to make destructive viruses. One wants to exploit things first before others would. It’s like grabbing the opportunity to test something dreadful and see how masses would react.
Computer virus creators are overlooking the fact that they can cause real damage not only to hard disks of the computer, but with real people who are not aware about such things.
An internet firewall is a system or cluster of system that enforces an access control policy between two or more networks. Firewall can be a pair of mechanism in which one performs blockage and the other is permission. As said in above statement, firewall enforces an access control policy in which it depends on it of what kind of access to be allowed or denied. If you have a good idea about what access to be denied and allowed, firewall will be useful. Firewall has configuration which should be updated and given emphasis to enforce the policy. The importance of a firewall is that it protects you from being intruded or keeping out bad ‘stuffs’ out of your network while doing or finishing your job. Firewall is often used by huge corporations for the purpose of protecting the data about corporate products and services or files to download and the like. Firewall is like a preventive measure that guards your network from any harmful ‘stuffs’ that can corrupt important data.
Installing software that screens out viruses on your computer is an edge to protect your data or files from being infected of some viruses which can cause computer crash loosing now all important files that are saved on your computer. At the most fundamental sense, anti-virus software is the first line of defense of your computer system in order to maintain the intactness of its programs and other saved data. In buying or choosing reliable anti-virus software, here are some guidelines:
1. Automatic Updates. It should have an automatic updates wherein every time you will turn on, boot or reboot your computer, the anti-virus software will at the same time be running to scan different vaults to search any virus.
2. Ability to Detect. The anti-virus software should have a feature in which it can easily detect virus and provide any warning icon as a signal that a certain virus has intruded the system of your network. In this manner, it will be easy for the computer and anti-virus user to heal of cure the infected area reducing now the possibility of spreading it out contaminating other data or programs.
3. Set up. The anti-virus should include easy set up for the user to be at his or her convenient in utilizing the anti-virus.
By having any anti-virus installed on your computer, you are allowing your computer files and programs to be protected from any harm that a certain virus can do. But like any other virus, it is still best to prevent it than curing it. Being meticulously selective in downloading files from the internet is still the best way to prevent virus from intruding your system. Here are some tips to avoid or prevent computer virus.
1. Use an internet firewall
2. Subscribe to industry standard anti-virus software
3. Never open an e-mail attachment from someone you don’t know.
4. Avoid opening an e-mail attachment from someone you know, unless you know exactly what the attachment is. The sender may be unaware that it contains a virus.
