Importance Of Anti-virus Software

[Raman1]

I want Some information on importance of having antivirus software in the PC.

Thanks in Advance.

[Milton.J]

Anti-virus software is used to find, remove or fix files that are infected with computer viruses. Most anti-virus companies release weekly updates of their databases to help keep you safe. Your anti-virus software uses these weekly updates (also known as virus signatures or definitions file) to identify newly discovered viruses.

The most basic anti-virus programs normally have several features to it: the memory resident scan, the system or file scan, and an automated updater. Many more sophisticated programs have many other integration tools that loan into your instant messengers, your e-mail software and many other programs.

It's very important when you configure your anti-virus software to always make sure you can download new updates every week. If you scan your system for viruses, and your definitions file is out of date, it may not even find a problem with your system.

[Spyrus]

f you are into computers, whether for business or for pleasure, then you will surely understand the need for anti-virus software. It cannot be denied that there are viruses that can infiltrate your system at just about any time. Thus, it would be wise to equip your system with anti-virus software. This way, your anti-virus software can serve the purpose of weeding out all possible viruses it can come across.

There are also some people who don’t want to install any anti-virus software onto their personal computers. This is no problem at all because there are a lot of websites that provide free virus scanning without requiring installation. By scanning, the web-based program will check all your hard drives for computer viruses and delete or heal them at your own discretion. This is indeed an effective way of cleaning your whole system, but this is not recommended at all. Computer viruses are being developed by the minute, even. Thus, your system just might be infiltrated already, without you even knowing it. And relying on web-based antivirus programs can prove to be too late for your system. Thus, it’s always better to get anti-virus software for your computer.

[Snake08]

What Is a Virus?

A virus is usually hidden, and can do a number of things, as it relates to the health of the computer. A few examples are provided below:

• Make a computer run slowly
• Prevent computers from booting up
• Damage parts of the system or amend how the system operates without the owner's knowledge
• Be used to steal personal details
• Move from machine to machine on a network
• Attack other machines using machine as a host
• Send out unauthorised messages

So, like a human virus a computer virus can be dangerous and possibly infectious to other computers. They can be spread between computers, and can also be transported via email. It is not limited to software however, as they can also be transported via usb drives and other types of media.


Where Does a Computer Viruses' Come From?

Computer viruses are usually malicious computer programs written in order to damage other people's machines or steal information or even cash. They are usually highly skilled programmers who have decided to use their skills in a negative manner. Some viruses are written as an "ego" boost. In other words, some programmers write these things just to prove that they can hack into a major site or obtain private information. However, there are also criminal programmers who have a much more devious intention.


What Does Antivirus Software Do?

Antivirus Software protects the computer from incoming threats and seeks out, destroys and warns of possible threats to the system. New viruses are coming out all the time. It is the job of the antivirus software to keep up with the latest threats. This is achieved by daily updates of the antivirus database definitions, which counteract the latest threats to provide constant protection.

[Zachary]

How does an antivirus software program detect and eliminate potential virus threats?

This can be accomplished in one of two ways.

First, the computer security program on your PC or laptop scans any files looking for virus definitions that match a virus dictionary. If a matching virus is found, the software alerts the user about the virus.

The second method of locating viruses is to identify and suspicious virus behavior, such as port monitoring, spyware or data capturing. When these behaviors are detected, the antivirus software springs into action and gets rid of the infected files.