Vol. 18, No. 30	May 6, 1999

Recent viruses:
Are you protected?

Unless you've just returned from a long stay in the 18th century, you've heard about Melissa, Papa, Chernobyl and other recent computer viruses.

According to Beth Miller, Information Technologies/User Services, there are three simple steps that University computer users should follow.

• Make sure your computer has virus protection software installed and running. Dr. Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit (Windows) and Virex (Macintosh) are available to members of the University community.
• If other people send you files, be careful. Scan Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel documents and all executable programs for viruses before opening them. "You should use anti-virus software to scan every file you import, open or download from another source," Miller cautioned.
• Update your virus software regularly. "New computer viruses and variants of old ones crop up almost daily," Miller said. "You must update your computer's anti-virus software regularly to make sure your computer has software that will recognize and protect your work from these new viruses."

How often you should update your anti-virus software depends on how you use your computer. "A lot of people use desktop mail readers precisely because it's so easy to open attachments in those programs," Miller said. "But macro viruses like Melissa highlight the problem of placing a higher value on convenience than safety.

"If you use a desktop e-mail program like Netscape Messenger or Microsoft Outlook or if you share files with people frequently, you should update your virus software at least every month," Miller said.

For more information about Dr. Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit and Virex, the UD-supported ant-virus software, visit <http://www.udel.edu/topics/ virus/drsol/>.

This web area includes instructions on

• how to check your version of the software and
• how to install the latest versions and drivers.

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