Computer Virus
By Ron Sadovsky, Alex Shen, Jacob Levy, and Ethan Kalisky
What is a computer virus?
-
A computer virus is a program that when operated:
- duplicates itself
- infects the computers other programs, files, or hard drive.
A computer virus typically harms the computer:
- It corrupts or deletes data.
- It accesses private information.
Viruses can also be spread to other computers:
- Through an email attachment containing a virus.
- Through a USB or floppy disk.
- Going on an unsecure website.
Ron Sadovsky
What else can computer viruses do?
They can recover your internet history and
post them on your facebook
They can implode your computer
They can make your computer slower than
a cripple turtle crawling in mud
They can take up space in the RAM
ALEX SHEN
How to prevent a computer virus
what you
- Be cautious of
download.
ail
- Do not open em
ent from
s
s
t
n
e
m
h
c
a
t
t
a
do not
u
o
y
t
a
h
t
s
l
i
ema
know.
e antil
b
a
t
u
p
e
r
a
d
- Downloa
e
virus softwar
ser, such
w
o
r
b
e
r
u
c
e
s
- Use a
Mozilla
r
o
e
m
o
r
h
C
e
as Googl
pposed to
Firefox, as o
orer or
l
p
x
E
t
e
n
r
e
t
n
I
Safari.
Ron Sadovsky
How and why viruses are created
-
Viruses are usually create
d
and used by cyber-crimina
ls.
Viruses are coded by
programmers.
Criminals can use the virus
es
for personal gain
- discovering credit ca
rd
and other account
information
- being able to delete
important data of the
victim
- to simply cause
problems for the victim
Ron Sadovsky
Common types of viruses that attack our computers
Memory Resident Virus
These viruses live in the computer memory & get activated whenever the system
runs, infecting all the files that are then opened.
Overwrite Virus
This virus deletes the information in the files that it infects,
making them useless once they have been infected.
Boot Sector Virus
This virus affects the start up or boot of the hard drive.
Polymorphic Virus
Polymorphic viruses encrypt themselves in a different way every time they infect
a system, making it impossible for antivirus software to find them.
Ethan Kalisky
A List of the Greatest of the Viruses
The Storm
The Sasser
The Nimba
The Melissa
The Code I and II
The Morris
The ILOVEYOU
The Brain Computer Virusr
Conficker
ALEX SHEN
How to remove a computer virus
1. If you are using windows, enter safe mode
2. Backup all your important data
3. Disconnect from the internet
puter
ne w c o m
a
t
e
G
1.
rive
w hard d
e
n
a
t
e
2. G
p ut e r
our com
y
w
o
r
h
3. T
ocean
into the
4. Delete temporary files
5. Run a virus scan
6. Use Autorun
ALEX SHEN
How Does a Computer Virus Infect Me?
Not having virus protection
Not running the latest updates
Downloading media of the internet (music,
games, software etc.)
Opening spam email, or an email attachment
Sharing music, files or photos with other
computer users
Visiting a website infected with a virus
Jacob Levy
Symptoms Of a Computer Virus.
Computer is frequently crashing
Loss of data or new data that is unexplained
Weird or erratic computer behavior (flashing
through your tabs)
Computer is slow when loading
Inaccessible disks or drives
Printer issues
Jacob Levy
Can I Get a Virus From
Facebook, My-Space or Twitter?
YES!!
-
POTENTIAL WAYS VIRUSES SPREAD THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA
Phishing: Scammers create fake profiles/pages asking for your username and
password to gain access to your account.
Worms: Worms can spread through social networks by your friends. For example,
a worm can promise to show a video through friend invites and the video would
infect your computer if you agreed to download it.
Passwords: Passwords that are easy to guess or telling people your password.
Privacy settings: If privacy settings are not set to Friends of Friends or Friends
Only in your Privacy settings under your account.
AND OF COURSE...SPAM!!!
Ethan Kalisky
Computer Virus Stats
1. 24 million households experience heavy spam.
2. 16 million households have experienced a serious virus problem in the past two years.
3. 8 million of households have had spyware in the past 6 months.
4. 1 million households lost money or compromised accounts from misused phishing.
5. The estimated cost of all households impacted by viruses, spyware, and phishing is $4.55 billion.
6. 40% of household are affected by viruses.
Jacob Levy
Why do Macs get very few viruses compared
to PCs?
Newer Macintosh operating systems, such as the Mac OS X, is built on one of
the oldest and most secure operating systems available.
Microsoft Windows is used by a lot more people than the
Apple Mac OS so because more people use Microsoft Windows,
it is a better target and makes it easier for viruses to spread.
Most of the computer virus writers are more familiar with
Microsoft Windows, which means it's easier for them create a virus for it.
Many of the tools, scripts, and code used to create
viruses are designed for Microsoft Windows.
Ethan Kalisky
Bibliography/Work Cited
"System Failure." Photobucket. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"How Does a Computer Get Infected with a Virus or Spyware?" How Does a Computer Get Infected with a Virus or Spyware?
N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"Computer Virus." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Nov. 2014. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"5 Signs You Have a Computer Virus | One Page | [Link]." The Kim Komando Show. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"Top 10 Computer Virus Symptoms Checklist." Top 10 Computer Virus Symptoms Checklist. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"Why Do People Create Viruses and Malware?" Why Do People Create Viruses and Malware? N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"File:[Link]." - Wikimedia Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014
Strickland, Jonathan. "10 Worst Computer Viruses of All Time - HowStuffWorks." HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks, 26 Aug. 2008.
Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"Digital Surveillance Magnifying Glass Scary Control Virus Technology."Dreamstime. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
"Top 10 Computer Viruses : Science Channel." Science Channel. Science Channel, n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.
Geier, Eric. "How to Remove Malware From Your Windows PC." PCWorld. PCWorld, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.
