When spam overwhelms your e-mail messages

Sci & Tech

Fredrick Obura

A recent report released by Microsoft security department suggests that more than 97 per cent of all e-mails sent over the Internet are unwanted.

Most e-mails people receive are dominated by spam adverts and usually have malicious attachments.

A cyber criminal would apply his or her computer prowess to steal, leak and destroy data in a computer. Office document attachments and PDF files are the most vulnerable.

Higher capacity broadband, better operating systems and higher power computers could be catalyst making it easier for hackers to attack a computer.

It is just a matter of precaution to ensure that any data is kept safe away from un-ethical Internet hackers. Use protective devices such as firewalls, anti-virus software to stay safe on the net. Virus is a programme that is designed by malicious IT experts. It spreads from one computer to another interfering with its different operations.

A computer virus could be spread or disguised as an attachment in an e-mail messages or through instant messaging, like when having a real time chat.

Erasing files

The danger of a virus is that it can corrupt or delete important document in a computer and erase files on a hard disk.

It is, therefore, essential that one scrutinises every message received from the Internet. It is even better to at times refrain from opening an e-mail attachment unless well conversant with its source.

An infected computer may show signs of infection almost immediately when the virus is relayed or later. While a computer virus can corrupt or delete programmes, other notable symptoms include inaccessibility of disk drives, crashing and restarting a machine every few minutes.

A computer virus could lead to immediate loss of files, the commonly used programmes are corrupted and stop functioning as usual.

An operating system either become unstable or just stop working. However, some of the signs could also be attributed to hardware problems.

Keep a computer secure by using effective anti virus software.

Anti virus software is a program that either comes installed in a computer or one install on purchase.

A complete security package will offer defense against viruses, Worms, and will detect un authorised users.

"It will deter hackers from gaining access when you are online or connected to a network" says Mr. Marvin Mahuro of e-tec supplies limited, a company that deals with anti-virus software.

"And to reduce computer viruses, obtain a reputable anti-virus software program and keep its anti-virus patterns up-to-date," he adds.

Some of the common internet security software companies are Norton, McAfee, Kerspesky among others.

The best anti-virus software though is the one that works best on a preferred system. It should have favorable features and be user friendly.

Operating systems

Because every operating system is unique, some like Linux don’t need ant-virus software, many users have confirmed that it is free from virus attack.

When shopping for new anti virus software, evaluate several products to find the one best suited for a computer in use. "One can shop online or from different stores. Before purchasing a full program get a trial version," he says.

Keep computer with the latest anti-virus update. Anti-virus software relies on regular updates to help protect against latest threats. Purchase an annual subscription from your anti virus software company to make sure your anti virus software stays current and effective.

To be safe from Internet threats, some anti-virus software may not prove the test of time, it is better to keep a back up of your information from a separate server.

When the anti virus fails to detect any threat, a back up server would be able to recover documents.

"Anti-virus software can only stop the viruses it knows about and unless it is kept updated, it may not identify the new version," he adds.

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