The staff at the University's Information Technology and Communication Office has been busy this summer, fielding countless questions regarding computer viruses.
ITC staff said they have encountered numerous viruses this summer, but viruses such as MTX, Hybris, Sircam and Code Red have been reoccurring problems. While the majority of viruses are harmless, some are designed to delete files and programs from computers.
Sircam has infected at least 10 University lab computers and about 30 e-mail attachments. It can affect all machines operating with Microsoft Windows programs and transmits itself, as many viruses do, through replication in shared University network files, said Ian Nofziger, an ITC Computing Help Desk staffer. Sircam also can retrieve confidential Microsoft Word computer documents and send them via e-mail to people listed in the user's address book.
Even with the best anti-virus software, users are only as protected as their most recent upgrade; virus scan programs cannot detect infected computers until software is made available to offer protection, ITC staff said.
Third-year College student Robin Moy suspected she had a virus this summer and was forced to reconfigure her computer. "I deleted everything and had to start over," Moy said. "Programs wouldn't work right, and I couldn't pinpoint the problem, so I deleted everything," she said.
To reduce the risk of getting or spreading a computer virus, users are encouraged to reduce file sharing, use passwords when sharing network files and only open attachments users expect to receive.
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