A Simple Description of What a Computer Virus Is
- Date: 2007-05-21 - Word Count: 402
Share This!
What is a Computer Virus?
Before understanding what a computer virus is, it is necessary to understand what a virus in when it occurs in a living form (such as a human body, an animal, or a plant).
A virus is a small organism that is only able to reproduce itself within another living cell or body. It is typically harmful to the cell or body in which it lives, and is the cause of many illnesses and diseases. The word virus comes from Latin and literally it means "poison."
So basically it is a "poison," able to reproduce itself within another cell or body. An example of an illness caused by a virus is the flu.
How does this relate to computers?
Well basically, a computer virus is a harmful computer program which will damage files or your computer, and which is able to duplicate and spread itself within a computer or computer network. Usually the computer virus is hidden within a program, file or document.
Criminals, or somewhat talented idiots with nothing better to do with their time, create computer viruses and spread them to other people's
computers. The sole purpose of this activity is to create trouble and damage.
Similar to a common virus like the flu (which spreads from person to person), the computer virus has the ability to spread and "infect" other computers, files or documents.
A computer virus can spread itself through files and documents; such as word-processing documents, spreadsheets, emails, computer programs etc. It can spread itself through the Internet and hrough local computer networks, as well as through removable storage devices such as memory sticks and floppy disks.
Because it is hidden, it is hard to detect. It can be spread to other computers, unknowingly, by the computer user.
What exactly does a computer virus do? Well, it works similarly to viruses (like the flu) that makes a person sick, A computer virus will make your computer "sick". What a virus will do to your computer depends on what it is programmed
to do. Some can be very harmful, while others are made to simply annoy.
A wide variety of names have been made up, in order to describe different types of computer viruses. Some examples are described in the following articles:
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-are-macro-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-are-email-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-is-trojan-horse.html
What to do about Computer Viruses
For more information on how to handle computer viruses, you may see the following articles:
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/05/what-to-do-about-computer-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/reviews-of-antivirus-software.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-to-look-for-when-buying-antivirus.html
I hope the above information will assist you in keeping your computer and your data safe.
Before understanding what a computer virus is, it is necessary to understand what a virus in when it occurs in a living form (such as a human body, an animal, or a plant).
A virus is a small organism that is only able to reproduce itself within another living cell or body. It is typically harmful to the cell or body in which it lives, and is the cause of many illnesses and diseases. The word virus comes from Latin and literally it means "poison."
So basically it is a "poison," able to reproduce itself within another cell or body. An example of an illness caused by a virus is the flu.
How does this relate to computers?
Well basically, a computer virus is a harmful computer program which will damage files or your computer, and which is able to duplicate and spread itself within a computer or computer network. Usually the computer virus is hidden within a program, file or document.
Criminals, or somewhat talented idiots with nothing better to do with their time, create computer viruses and spread them to other people's
computers. The sole purpose of this activity is to create trouble and damage.
Similar to a common virus like the flu (which spreads from person to person), the computer virus has the ability to spread and "infect" other computers, files or documents.
A computer virus can spread itself through files and documents; such as word-processing documents, spreadsheets, emails, computer programs etc. It can spread itself through the Internet and hrough local computer networks, as well as through removable storage devices such as memory sticks and floppy disks.
Because it is hidden, it is hard to detect. It can be spread to other computers, unknowingly, by the computer user.
What exactly does a computer virus do? Well, it works similarly to viruses (like the flu) that makes a person sick, A computer virus will make your computer "sick". What a virus will do to your computer depends on what it is programmed
to do. Some can be very harmful, while others are made to simply annoy.
A wide variety of names have been made up, in order to describe different types of computer viruses. Some examples are described in the following articles:
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-are-macro-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-are-email-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-is-trojan-horse.html
What to do about Computer Viruses
For more information on how to handle computer viruses, you may see the following articles:
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/05/what-to-do-about-computer-viruses.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/reviews-of-antivirus-software.html
http://anti-virus-and-internet-security.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-to-look-for-when-buying-antivirus.html
I hope the above information will assist you in keeping your computer and your data safe.
Related Tags: malware, spyware, adware, free, protection, spyware removal, c, antivirus, anti, remove spyware, free antivirus, anti-adware, antiadware, anti-malware
Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles
Recent articles in this category:
- Improper Way Of Marketing Reflects Poorly On A Company.
New business, product or service everything requires visibility, awareness in order to come into the - Replacing Paper Prints With Online Versions
Nowadays saving out on resources and being additionally informative are both aspects that are in. In - Stop Smoking Effectively
If I told you of a way that you could stop smoking harmful tobacco would you believe it? Most people - What Is Runtime Error 182? And How To Fix It
Are you finding an effective way to fix runtime error 182? Do you think fixing runtime error 182 is - Do You Know How To Fix Runtime Error 87 In Minutes?
Are you finding an effective way to fix runtime error 87? Do you think fixing runtime error 87 is to - Knowledge About Avi, Avi Player, Avi Converter On Mac
Knowledge about AVI, AVI player, AVI Converter on MacWhat is an AVI?AVI, an acronym for Audio Video - Buy Your Highly Successful Email Survey Software Today
Email Survey Software- Boost Your Business and Increase ProfitsAn email survey software could be one - Xrm - The Anything Relationship Management Solution
I recently attended the Microsoft Dynamics West Region FY11 Sales Planning Retreat. This year's meet - What Are The Benefits Of Working With Electronic Medical Records
Recording medical information is a vital part of health care services. These records are necessary f - Basic Factor To Make Website Business Oriented
Internet is home for millions of websites. The online business is becoming more and more competitive
Most viewed articles in this category:
- Parental Control Software
Parental control software is software that can help parents protect their children when they are onl - Digital Asset Management Software
Managing and organizing your organization's documents is a critical component to your business's suc - AdobeRGB vs. sRGB
Understanding color spaces I'll try to explain it very simplified, but understandable for everyone - Confessions of a Prankster
I wanted to get a jump on April Fool's Day, partially because of the long, cold winter blues, and pa - Malicious Thoughts About The Spyware Ills Of My PC
Who would think I was capable of such revengeful thoughts about the parties responsible for inflicti - Recover File and Recover Deleted File Tools
Data recovery software is a very effective way of retrieving data from a worn or damaged hard disk d - Life without Windows
Ubuntu, a user-friendly version of Linux, has been running so nicely on my home PC that I decided to - What Benefit Does an Online Software Download Site Offer You?
Are you having a problem that where you find a good softeware when you consider to have a try or wan - Maintaining A Website
There was an era when people were talking about how to create a website using html coding or some ea - Benefits Of Proper Time Tracking
Have you ever written down time when you have started and finished your work? Maybe you have had mul