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When you buy a new computer, your sales agent would strongly advise you to install a good and effective antivirus program especially if you plan to connect to the Internet. The virus is a common word for those versed in computer lingo, but to those who are just entering the world of computers, such an advice would result to confusion and is sometimes unfortunately neglected.

What is a Virus?

A virus is a type of software that can make copies of itself and spread within the file system of a computer. Its behavior is similar to a biological virus that attaches itself to a cell in order to multiply with it, and infect other cells in the body. Although it is just one type of malicious software, the term virus has been used interchangeably among worms, Trojans and other kinds of malware.

Viruses are propagated by the transfer of infected files into an uninfected computer where, when accessed, it runs a program hidden within the infected file in order to replicate itself. One type of virus, the resident virus, loads itself into the memory of a host so that it is called up and ran each time the operating system runs a task. Others scour the victim*s file system for executable (.exe) files to infect and copy their code to that file.

With the widespread use of the Internet viruses are more easily spread among many computers. Most viruses are spread through emails, while others are surreptitiously downloaded from sites that are intentionally created with these malicious programs. Some types of viruses are also spread through peer-to-peer networks, either intentionally or unintentionally. The latter case happens when a file within a computer that is shared in P2P networks is infected without a user*s notice.

The most common symptom of a virus infection within a computer is that it slows down considerably. One can also see the presence of an unknown program running along with the essential processes of the operating system.

Effects of the Computer Virus

In this context, we will use the term *virus* to refer to the different kinds of malicious software that are abundant in the Internet nowadays.

Some viruses are intended to corrupt several files in a computer system and delete several files. Some are even programmed to suddenly reformat the contents of a hard disk without the user*s knowledge or authority. Others are just created to annoy by suddenly popping up text, video or audio messages, although they are not without damages. These viruses may eat up a lot of computer memory, which could slow down a computer*s operation causing it to make a memory dump.

Methods of Combatting Viruses

Several software companies have brought up solutions and programs to address the problem of viruses. Many of these software are commercial and have to be bought at a price, although they come with a 30-day trial. Some companies produce free software programs that come with a paid upgrade option for more features.

The effectiveness of each software program vary. Some also inadvertently contribute to the spread of the virus within the computer, as some viruses are capable of not being detected by the program. Some can even trick antivirus software by passing requests to open a file to itself instead of the operating system, and giving the antivirus software an uninfected version of the file.