Document Actions
Virus Information
Harrington Virus Fighting Activites
All computers managed by Harrington Computer Support have "Norton Anti-virus" installed. As a result, Computer Support has the ability to keep virus protection up-to-date on all computers by "pushing" new virus definitions out to all Windows machines in the building daily or when needed. (Macs tend to be less of a target of virus makers).
A second defensive line against viruses is that the CEHD email server (@coe.tamu.edu addresses) scans and blocks both incoming and outgoing virus laden messages. This scanner is built upon the Sophos virus scanner. The definitions for this scanner is updated automatically 24x7 as soon as Sophos releases a new definition. The top 5 viruses caught by our email scanner are listed at the top of this page.
Even with these efforts, it is still essential that individuals are always vigilant about suspicious messages (especially attachments). You should never install or execute any file you receive through e-mail. Also, you should not attempt to disable the automatic virus scannon
- October 28, 2002
- CIS began to scan and block all viruses entering through the TAMU
firewall. However, messages originating from inside of TAMU (including ResNet)
may still contain viruses so it is essential that virus protection software
continue to be used on all desktops.
What this means:
- All e-mail delivered to campus e-mail addresses (eg. @tamu.edu, @neo.tamu,edu, @coe.tamu,edu) from off campus will scanned for the 75,000+ known computer viruses. If a virus is found, ???? (waiting for answer from CIS)
- The campus scanner will NOT scan e-mail originating from within the university (including ResNet - the dorms). However, e-mail destined to @coe.tamu.edu and @hlkn.tamu.edu addresses will continue to be scanned by the respective mail servers.
- You can stop being careful about viruses. E-mail borne viruses can still get through email accounts such as hotmail or yahoo used by many students. These students could then pass along the viruses to faculty, staff, and other students from within the firewall.
- You can get away without virus scanning software (eg. Norton Antivirus, McAfee) on your local computer. In addition to e-mail, viruses can also infect floppy disks and even web pages. It is essential that you keep your virus scanning software updated and running on your local computer.
Scanning your computer
If you are running Windows within Harrington, you should see an icon of a shield similar to the one indicated below on the lower right hand side of your computer screen.
1. Right-click on this icon, and select "Open Norton Antivirus"
2. Next, you will see the Norton Antivirus program. Click on "Scan Computer."
3. Select the drive(s) you wish to scan.
4. Click on the "Scan" button to begin the scan. The process may take several minutes depending on the number of files you have. So, you may want to start the scan just prior to leaving for a class, lunch, or to go home. The Norton window will tell you the results of the scan when you return.
Other Resources
- Sophos: http://www.sophos.com/virusinfo/
- McAfee: http://www.mcafee.com/anti-virus/default.asp
- Norton: http://securityresponse.symantec.com/
- CERT (at Carnegie Mellon): http://www.cert.org/other_sources/viruses.html
- Hoaxbusters: http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/