Effect of Computer Viruses in the Computing Enviroments

INTRODUCTION

A computer virus is a computer program that can replicate itself and spread from one computer to another. The term "virus" is also commonly, but erroneously, used to refer to other types of malware, including but not limited to adware and spyware programs that do not have a reproductive ability.

          Malware includes computer viruses, computer worms, Trojan horses, most rootkits, spyware, dishonest adware and other malicious or unwanted programs, including true viruses. viruses are sometimes confused with worms and Trojan horses, which are technically different. A worm can exploit security vulnerabilities to spread itself automatically to other computers through networks, while a Trojan horse is a program that appears harmless but hides malicious functions. Worms and Trojan horses, like viruses, may harm a computer data or performance. Some viruses and other malware have symptoms noticeable to the computer user, but many are surreptious or simply do noting to call attention to each other. Some viruses do nothing beyond reproducing themselves.

          Computer viruses are executable programs capable of self replicating and self modifying in the system with the motive of disrupting operations. The viruses may multiply in your computer, most especially, at the storage devices example, memory, hard disk, floppy disk and compact disk (CD) e.t.c. everything about computer viruses is unauthorized. Their entry into your electronic device is very easy and rampant, their execution and obstructing the computer's functioning is also absolutely against your will. The effect of these viruses is varying in your system, ranging from simple to complex depending upon the degree of harm they cause to your computer, the computer viruses are man made programs, programmed to stop pirating softwares, internet scammers and all types of frauds using the internet. In the mid-eighties (1980s), so legend has it, the Amjad brothers of Pakistan who has a computer store, was frustrated by computer piracy.  This prompted them to write the first computer virus, a boot sector virus called Brain. From those simple beginnings, an entire counter-culture industry of virus creation and distribution emerged, leaving us today with several tens of thousands of viruses. In just over a decade, most of us have been familiar with the term computer virus.

 Source:  wikipedia encyclopedia online.

BACKGROUND OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

In 1949, Hungarian American Mathematician John Von Neuman, at the institute for advanced study in Princeton, New Jersey, proposed that it was theoretically possible for a computer program to replicate. This theory was tested in the 1950s at Bell laboratories when a game called Core Wars was developed. In 1983, American Electrical Engineer Fred Cohen, at the time a graduate students, coined the term virus to describe a self replicating computer program. In 1985, the first Trojan horses appeared, posing as graphic enhancing program called EGABTR and a game called NUKE-LA. The so called Brain virus appeared in 1986, two new viruses appeared:

1. Stone, the first bootstrap-sector virus
2. The Internet worm, which crossed the United States overnight via computer network.

Viruses grew more sophisticated in the 1990s until the year 2003 was a particular bad year for computers viruses and worm. First, the blaster worm infected more than 10 million machines worldwide by exploiting a flaw in Microsoft's Windows operating system. A machine that lacks the appropriate patch could be infected simply by connecting to the internet. Today, more than 100 millions of computers are infected with computer virus.

Source: encyclopaedia online 

BASIC OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

Computers viruses are not inherently destructive. The essential feature of a computer program that causes it to be classified as a virus is not its ability to gain control of the computer and a fully functional copy of itself. It can reproduce when it is executed; it makes one or more copies of itself. Those copies may later be executed, to create still more copies, infinitum. Not all computer programs that are destructive are classified as viruses because they do not all reproduce, and not all viruses are destructive because reproduction is not destructive. However, all viruses do reproduce. The computer virus overcomes the roadblock of operator control by hiding itself in other programs. Thus, it gains access to the CPU simply because people run programs that it happens to have attached itself to without their knowledge. A computer virus attaches itself to other programs carried it in the name ‘virus'. However that analogy is wrong since the programs it attaches to are not in any sense alive.

Virus: what exactly is a virus?

A virus is basically an executable file which is designed such that first of all it should be able to infect documents, then it has to have the ability to survive by replicating itself and then it should also avoid detection. Usually to avoid detection, a virus disguise itself as a legitimate program which the user would not normally suspect to be a data on the hard disk i.e. on the FAT (file allocation table).

TYPES OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

Computer viruses can be classified into several different types.

1. File or Program Viruses: some programs are viruses in disguise when executed, they load the virus in the memory along with the program and perform the predefined steps and infect the system. They infect program files with extensions like .EXE, .COM, .BIN, .DRV and .SYS. some file viruses just replicate while others destroy the program being used at that time.
2. Boot Sector Viruses (MBR or Master Boot Record): boot sector viruses can be created without much difficulty and infect either the master boot record of the hard disk or the floppy drive.
3. Multipartite Virus: multipartite viruses are the hybrid variety; they can be best describing as a cross between both Boot Viruses and file viruses. They not only infect files but also infect the boot sector.
4. Stealth Viruses: they viruses are stealth in native and use various methods to hide themselves and to avoid detection.
5. Polymorphic Viruses: they are the most difficult virus detect. They have the ability to mutate this means that they change the viral code known as the signature each time it spreads or infects.
6. Macro Viruses: in essence, a macro is an executable programme embedded in a word processing documents or other type of file. Typically users employ macros to automate repetitive tasks and there by save key strokes.

LIMTATION OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

Most of the offices in the world today are filled up with Personal Computers (PC) for speedy service delivery.  One of the limitations of computer viruses and other destructive programs is that, it can never damage or harm your hardware. Hardware's are physical components of a personal computer system, which are typically made up of the casing, the motherboard, the processor, the memory, the hard drive, keyboard, mouse, and monitor e.t.c. viruses are capable of destroying all the programs, files, and folders in a computer system be definitely, cannot harm your hardware.

Computer viruses are capable of causing harm and disruptions in the computing environment, the significant of the study is to analyse the effect of computer viruses, consequences, types, symptoms and ways of avoiding and removing viruses.

Source: aritclebase.com/orjicyrus

PROBLEMS OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

1. they are not easy to remove
2. they are destructive and obstructive programs
3. they replicate themselves, spread themselves and some even disguise as a real program

CONSEQUENCES AND SYMPTOMS OF COMPUTER VIRUSES IN THE COMPUTING ENVIRONMENT

Consequences

1. Program: some viruses may impair your certain computer programs in your computer centre or unit, as a result of this, you may not be able to access those programs smoothly sometimes, the affected program may yield inaccurate results.
2. File: there are viruses that can modify, delete or corrupt your files, sometimes; you might be denied access to it.
3. Hard Disk Drive (HDD):some dangerous virus can even attack your hard drive, these viruses may attack the data present in your hard drive, and it may result to crash. Crashing the disk will result to boot failure (lose of files and OS)
4. Printers: computer viruses are capable of attacking your printers drive at the device manager, even hardware scanner. Knowing fully well that "drivers" acts as an interface between the hardware and operating. This may result to error printing or device recognised.
5. Keyboard: some viruses may affect your keyboard, thereby producing inaccurate display, in the sense that when you press the letter "D" on the keyboard, "L" will display on the screen.
6. Operating System: some wicked viruses like "Odinga" may decide to eat up your windows files and components. Operating system (windows) are programs given to a computer to work with, if this programs are eaten up by a virus, it will result to boot failure after restarting your system.

Symptoms

1. Speed: your computer system may slow down under the influence of viruses as they consume your system memory for their execution. This means that virus only execute with the help of system memory like RAM (random access memory).
2. Operation: computer may hang frequently of may display errortic error messages, viruses are capable of colliding two program together (eg Microsoft Word and Corel Draw), thereby creating software (program) conflict making the system to hang.
3. Booting: your computer may suddenly restart at times, may not load properly, in few experience, you may not be able to access your disk drives.
4. Peripherals: some computer viruses may invade your Device Manager  driver software's in your computer resulting in the relevant operational issues e.g. disturb your printer driver, scanner, monitor driver, Bluetooth driver or sound driver e.t.c.
5. Display: at times, your computer display may deform and you may notice altered image of dialogue boxes and menus.

HOW INFECTIONS OCCUR

A virus can infect a computer in a number of ways, it can arrive on a floppy disk, flash drive or any removable storage device. Your system could be infected through downloading, file sharing, program sharing and also copying infected files. Traditionally, even if a virus found its way into a computer, I will not actually infect the machine unless the user is somehow into executing the virus by opening it. Connecting a computer to a network users run a risk of computer virus infection, because the internet connect computers around the world. Virus can spread from one end of the globe to another in a matter of minutes.

THIS SECTION EXPLAINS HOW A VIRUS CAN BE DETECTED, REMOVE AND AVOID

Virus Detection: many users install anti virus software that can detect eliminate known viruses after the computer download or runs the executable.

Two Ways of Virus Detection

1. By using a list of virus signature definitions. This is the most common method that an anti virus software application uses to detect virus. This works by examine the content of the computer's memory (its RAM, and boot sectors) and files stored on the foxed or removable drives (hard drives) and comparing those files against a database of known virus "signature". The disadvantages of this detection method is that users are only protected from virus that pre date their last virus definition.
2. The second method is to use a heuristic algorithm to find viruses based on common behaviour. This method has the ability to detect novel viruses that anti virus security firms have yet create a signature for.

HOW TO REMOVE COMPUTER VIRUS

1. System Restoration: in Microsoft Windows, such as Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7, there is a tool known as System Restore which restores the registry and critical system files to a desire previous checkpoint. Restoring a system to a previous work provided the virus is not design to corrupt the restore files or also exists in previous restore point. Some viruses disable system restore and other important tool such as Task Manager and Command Prompt. An example of virus that does this is CiaDoor.
2. Windows Safe Mode: however, many viruses can still be remove in a system by entering windows safe mode and then using system tools.
3. Scanning and deleting with update Antivirus software
4. Deleting the infected files by holding the shift key on the keyboard.
5. Operating System Reinstallation (Formatting): reinstalling the operation system is another approach of virus removal. It involves either reformatting the computer hard drive and installing the OS operating system and all programs from original media, or restoring the entire partition with a live CD, or putting the hard drive into another computer and booting from its operating system with great care not to infect the second computer.

HOW TO AVIOD COMPUTER VIRUS

1. Avoid copying infected files
2. desist from images and folder sharing, because it may contain virus
3. update your antivirus software every month
4. avoid pirating software's
5. avoid printer sharing
6. scan any storage device such as flash drive before making use of it
7. avoid online downloading, internet sharing
8. install active antivirus software
9. avoid networking and pairing of devices
10. avoid files transfer through Bluetooth, infrared or USB

PREVENTION OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

One need to prevent an unwanted harm to a computer, as they said, prevention is better than cure. Computer can be prevented from virus by adhering to these unlisted instructions.

1. Encrypting of Data: encrypting is the science of cryptography, which involves encoding and decoding of data and messages with secret code. This is done so that data and message cannot be read or understood by an unauthorised person(s).
2. Administrator Password: pass-wording your system can restrict unwanted person(s). in your absence, friend(s) can infect your systems with a USB storage device (flash disk). But pass-wording the computer can prevent such infection(s).
3. Parental Control: this is a tool that enable a computer administrator to create a multiple accounts for often users and allowance time. This also restrict some programs from the users.

Source: Amanze, B.C (2010).

PROGRAMS THAT  PREVENT COMPUTER VIRUSES

1. McAfee Virus Scan
2. Avast Antivirus
3. Norton AntiVirus
4. Kaspasky AntiVirus
5. Avira AntiVirus

ADVANTAGES OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

Although computer virus is as dangerous as HIV(Human Immune Virus). Computer Viruses, Worms and Trojan Horses are enemies in the computing environment. But this research has come up with two advantages of computer virus.

1. Money: a lot of programmers have decided to end their living in writing viruses and its anti viruses just to earn money and gain popularity. Viruses are created very day by people, likewise the antivirus are also created to remove the virus. When the virus infects your system, you have to go to software shop and purchase antivirus software. You might also need to pay the PC technician to reformat the system if seriously infected.
2.  Authentication /Keep Off :some times, many educational and financial institution uses virus as keep off for internet hackers, internet scanners e.t.c when trying to hack a server, their system maybe infected with virus.

DISADVANTAGES OF COMPUTER VIRUSES

Computer viruses have numerous disadvantages to the computer users in the computing environment.

1. loss of files and data
2. it reduce the performance of a computer system, making it slow in operation.
3. corruption of software's and drivers
4. it causes computer stress.

CONCLUSIONS

I have gone through the basic definitions of viruses and other destructive programs, consequences of computer virus, symptoms, virus detection, limitations, type's e.t.c. I have also explained the advantages and disadvantages of virus. In the bid to catch up with the latest technology in the world today, computers are taking over our lives, from office to shopping and E-banking. Computer viruses are capable of prolonging more harms in the computing environment, and also causing a lot of computer stress to computer users. We cannot run away from computer because of virus. Therefore, necessary precaution need to be taken has been discussed in this seminar.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Viruses have cause more than N100 million damage ages to the computer users. Due to the widely existence of computer viruses in the computing environment, I recommend the following:

1. you must prevent intentional intrusion into your computer and network that take the form of viruses and Trojan Horses
2. Educate your self about viruses and how they can commonly spread from computer to computer
3. have at least one commercial virus detection program and use it regularly to check your computer every day
4. Computer users should be vigilant and careful on the type of file and folder they receive and transfer.
5. Government should try and kick off war against computer viruses, so as to reduce the high rate of damages in the computing environment
6. computer users should engage in secure networking sharing
7. update your Antivirus software every month.